[so_real]

High treason!!! A nation that competes within itself first is stronger and more capable of competing with other nations. Monopolies, in all contexts, are a source of weakness - hence anti-trust legislation in our nation with respect to business. If you want to win the gold medal explore all training methods.

[GSlob]

"Monopolies, in all contexts, are a source of weakness "
If one could end up with a monopoly on scientific knowledge, one would become a god, or be like god, using the expression from Genesis - hardly a weakness. Try to imagine bypassing such a monopoly - there are no substitutes for knowledge, and even if there were, it would take knowledge to find them. Thus your statement cannot apply to ALL possible monopolies, but only to some [even if the most] of them.