Dear Angry American, Joining Tea Party NOT Your Only Option

Do we need government regulations for clean water? Oversight on meat inspections? What about the FAA? Wouldn't want airplanes running into each other. What about police? Fire Departments? Do you want someone regulating the drugs that companies make?

There's a lot more to government than just roads and bridges.

Scruffy wrote: Do we need government regulations for clean water? Oversight on meat inspections? What about the FAA? Wouldn't want airplanes running into each other. What about police? Fire Departments? Do you want someone regulating the drugs that companies make?

There's a lot more to government than just roads and bridges.

The last refuge of the progressive scoundrel - to argue for the current size and scope of the federal and state governments by forwarding as their argument the parts of those governments which account for the least amount of spending.

Of course we need those services Scruffy, but if you look at what percentage of the government those services account for in terms of fiscal outlay you will quickly find that those essential services could be had with a much smaller government and a much lower tax rate.

PrintSmith wrote:

Scruffy wrote: Do we need government regulations for clean water? Oversight on meat inspections? What about the FAA? Wouldn't want airplanes running into each other. What about police? Fire Departments? Do you want someone regulating the drugs that companies make?

There's a lot more to government than just roads and bridges.

The last refuge of the progressive scoundrel - to argue for the current size and scope of the federal and state governments by forwarding as their argument the parts of those governments which account for the least amount of spending.

Of course we need those services Scruffy, but if you look at what percentage of the government those services account for in terms of fiscal outlay you will quickly find that those essential services could be had with a much smaller government and a much lower tax rate.

BearMtnHIB stated that all he needed was roads and bridges. My point was, that the things we need rapidly expand. Just like in the movie "The Jerk," it starts with "All I need is this lamp." Then it expands to "and this ashtray." Then it's "and Federal Regulation of airplane traffic."

BTW - thanks for calling me a scoundrel. Classy!

Unlike BearMtn, IMO, all we need is Fire Protection, living here in the mountains. Being in Park County, I have learned to not count on Road and Bridge, any way, and personally think the S.O only takes reports after the fact, have water via well, have septic tank, and pay for trash pickup. Probably the only thing I cannot do is protect my home from forest fire.

You, Scruffy, are indeed a scoundrel, or possibly a scoundrel-ess, not knowing if you are what is pictured on your avatar, but neither word is intended to be classy!! :bash :woo hoo:

Do we need government regulations for clean water? Oversight on meat inspections? What about the FAA? Wouldn't want airplanes running into each other. What about police? Fire Departments? Do you want someone regulating the drugs that companies make?

Yea Printsmith - I hear this argument again and again - and the fact is that some of those functions can be privatized - others could be managed better by government, but the bottom line is this...

What do we really need? We could (as Americans) do very well on 1/5 of the government we have now, and specifically in the state government - none of those functions mentioned in the quote above need to be federal functions.

Police and Fire departments are a function of local government supported by property taxes. They could be cut by quite a bit in my area without any noticable affect to the community.

The other functions are federal level functions and here's my take on them;
Clean water - State law covers water quality in Colorado. We do not need federal level clean water regulations. States can collaborate where interests overlap. We have a court system in place to adjudicate these issues be they civil or criminal matters.

In other words = Eliminate the EPA, they are a burden on taxpayers as well as businesses

FAA - this is a llegitimate function of federal government. It should be streamlined and made more efficient. All the funding for this function should come out of those taxes already being paid by Air travel passengers and the Airlines who are taxed.

Meat inspections - the USDA should be eliminated and replaced by a privatized system of inspection, supported by state laws which utilize the existing court system in place to adjudicate issues be they violations by corporations or otherwise.

No company wants to be found with contaminated beef/food - the bad press alone would destroy them - when the market hear's of the news of many violations, no-one will buy their products.

Drugs - completely gut the FDA and start over. Streamline the process. I worked for a pharmaceutical company many years ago and have witnessed first hand the total disaster that is the FDA. There is no reason why a drug approval process should cost 500 million dollars per drug. This is adding to the cost of our medicine, and every American has to pay it above what the drug actually costs.

Start over with a system that minimizes costs to businesses and provides the safest drugs to America and the world. Many functions of the FDA could be privatized.

Just as underwriters laboratories provides standards of safety and checks for compliance on electrical appliances - private companies can replace many government functions with better reliability and safety than our federal government agencies could ever provide. We just have to stop thinking that the government is the answer to every problem.