Time and time again governments have recognised the need for a state owned airline operation. It is of economic necessity, no matter what certain ill-informed individuals might think, the basic survival of a nation is based on its ability to sustain an infrastructure. An airline is part of that infrastructure.
Why do we pay taxes (although excessive in some cases, which I'm against), is because we are societal beings. Certain material requirements are needed for the sustainability of human life in a collective. For eg. roads, electricity, communication, water, sewage, etc. Transportation is the category we as (insecure/egotistical/self-centered/paranoid) pilots are most concerned with, which is also a basic neccessity for the survival of a nation.
Anyone whose studied economics at even first year level will understand this concept. If theoretically a government was to do away with its state controlled airline, the gap created (if taken over by a private consortium), only tends to widen the welfare triangle, which means a slide backwards.
If one argues that the US carriers are totally privatised, I disagree. Take a deeper look at what happened after 9/11. The American government have a law called chapter 11, to deal with dire times such as that, this then protects economically pertinent companies. The US government protected the total collapse of its main carriers...in normal circumstances such businesses would have closed down for good.
Again....narrow minded individuals need to remove their blinkers and consider the bigger picture, life's not just about you, your family and career (command in three years as opposed to ten, really now!)