The Fantasy Of Smaller Government
SEARCH BLOG: GOVERNMENT
Everyone talks about smaller government, but the reality is that governments cannot easily get smaller once they have been instituted. More than likely, governments will expand regardless of which political party to which politicians claim allegiance is in power.
Here is a perspective of what political philosophies claim and then... what is....
The reality of politics in the United States is that there are two fringe groups... Libertarian and Communist... that make a lot of noise, but generally get ignored when it comes to reality. That leaves so-called conservatives and liberals, both of which practice government essentially in the same way.
Conservatives will argue that they want smaller government, but the reality is that conservatives simply want government to spend tax dollars differently... and, perhaps, less. In practice, Conservatives have been more than willing to let the government purchase services from them rather than have the government purchase services directly from government employees. That's outsourcing. Think charter schools. It is the notion that if the government spends tax dollars to purchase services from a for-profit entity, the services will be better and more efficient that if purchased from permanent employees. There may be some degree of truth in some instances, but the effect is the same... government controls... taxpayers pay.
It all boils down to control. Who controls the money and how is the money spent... not necessarily that money will not be spent... that government will get smaller. It is a matter of degree and direction... and perhaps rate of growth.
It is a matter of being practical in a world where power is easily organized. A million individuals, each going their own way without regard to the wants and needs of others, cannot compete against a million organized individuals... even if that organization costs more and may be restrictive on an individual basis. The Libertarian might argue that a million individuals could simply hire those among them to provide protection and other services as needed. But the reality is that, without organization, a million people could never create an efficient and effective pseudo-system because no one would be willing to give up their individual "liberty" to achieve a "group benefit."
It's human nature... from the time that the first proto-humans banded together and leaders emerged and a hierarchal structure was created. Free-agent individuals in the absence of some form of government is a fantasy. What is also human nature is to live with a situation until it becomes intolerable... and then destroy the root of that situation... and start all over again with another government that will eventually run amok.
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. ... God forbid we should ever be twenty years without such a rebellion; what country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms." -- Thomas Jefferson to William Stephens Smith, 1787That wasn't a threat; it was just an observation. The faster central government grows, the more likely there will be resistance... whether in the form of protests and "voting out the bums" or in the form that Thomas Jefferson envisioned. Then Libertarians will have another chance. But watch out for the communist totalitarians as well. Chaos breeds extremes.
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