Old skills have become obsolete. Jobs have been lost. To deal with this problem, access to training and retraining is vital, plus a safety net that encourages work, including adjustment assistance and programs such as the Earned Income Tax Credit. The private sector is the heart of the new technology. But at critical points the government has played a central role through support for basic and pre-commercial research.
Government has a key role in the establishment of the infrastructure of the new economy.
Finally, however, I want to stress policies toward competition, open markets and change. New firms, new technologies and new business systems are springing up. The nature and pace of technology are new, but the importance of change is not. The proportions of each remain the same. But in actuality the ice is continuously melting and the water is continuously freezing.