There is one simple reason why state-owned enterprises do not work: political meddling.
At best, this means that the politicians use their shareholding to manipulate things for their own political ends - which basically means either vote buying to stay in power, or nation-statism and neocolonialism. As the Guv points, the French are bad offenders with this in francophone Africa.
At worst, this can mean a company is run mainly for vested interests (re. developing country cronyism) or as an extension of the welfare state (re. seventies Britain and much of continental Europe today).
Such meddling almost always goes against the standard business practice of maximising profit for shareholders by proving customers with superior goods or services as cheaply as possible.
WAIF-er I'm not getting at you, but you do have some rather interesting views on how to run a business re your comments on this thread in wannabes for example
Cabair upbeat despite current climate
foggy.
[ 10 November 2001: Message edited by: foghorn ]