Hawk, you got me going with the little comment that corporations create jobs, which leads to income, to tax, to favourable social context ...
I asked myself, who does create jobs?
Being a Libertarianz and Act supporter, [extreme right wing parties, according to labeling convention], my Pavlovian response is supposed to be the same as yours.
But thinking about it a little, I think the government creates jobs. I want to go on to say that the voters create the government, but too many unelected governments have lasted for too long to make voters a pre-requisite for government. Voters are a relatively new phenomenon.
I'm stuck with government being the creator of jobs.
Governments are the enforcers of contract. As soon as there are two people in a trade, there needs to be a contractual enforcement. Within a social context, where people know each other intimately, there is some social pressure and attachment to maintain trade agreements. But it doesn't take many people before an enforcement agency is needed.
Ideally, "my word is my bond" is the most efficient trading method, and nearly all agreements are in fact handled like that. Having the government's enforcement as a backdrop is sufficient to keep things on the rails.
A population somehow forms a government according to the cultural mores of that population. The government's function is to act as keeper of the commons, enforcer of the rules, protector of property and person [and persecutor of those who the government deems beyond the pale].
The government prints some money, hires police, army, judiciary and other functionaries, who then go on to spend the money they get from the government on things they want, which the population sets about providing them. Once the population has the money, they start trading among themselves, under contracts enforced by the government, police and judiciary, protected by the military, and managed by aviation authorities, pollution control authorities, resource management and protection authorities and so on. The government taxes the trades, to pay for the services required by the boss of the government or the demands of the electorate.
It starts small and grows like Topsy. After 100 years, the government is enormous, if they are doing a good job and don't kill the goose which lays the golden egg. The driving forces are the desire by the population to eat, root, raise children, play, be warm, avoid pain, death, destitution and answer the question, "Why?"
In a way, I'd like it if a great big government attended to everything, so I don't have to own anything or figure out anything. That was my Utopian idea when young. The world is too complex for any of us to be able to manage our own lives. We need specialized expertise for an infinite array of things, which we need to manage to live efficiently and maximize our prospects of satisfying our drives. It seemed to me that a government was best placed to perform such functions, answerable to We the Sheeple.
However, it was very soon after getting involved with things as an 18 year old that my Utopian ideas started packing up. I'm now a foaming at the mouth, rabid, extreme right wing wacko who wants government out of my face and out of my life. Well, that's a slight exaggeration, because the essential functions remain [military, police, contract enforcement, person, private property and commons protection]. The other things can be left to freely-trading individuals and companies.
My experiences of governments and private companies is that government departments are universally horrendously wasteful, expensive, inefficient and stultifying. Private companies are out to survive and profit and keep their customers satisfied. Not all are good. They go under and their resources are distributed back into the market.
I've been, as a salesman and sales engineer and technical services manager and product development advisor, in Canada, New Zealand, then London and Belgium for BP Oil International, in literally thousands of businesses and government facilities. Governments pour it down the drain, universally.
The EU used to drive me nuts! They wanted a standard diesel specification for all of Europe. I was trying to explain to them that diesel engines in Spain need different fuel from those in Sweden and cities need different fuels from long haul operators and rail. The NZ government drove me nuts. They set up a fuels specification committee to do a bad job on something which took a small portion of my time to look after [they had a whole committee or mumbo jumbo]. I have hundreds of examples I can quote of governments and businesses.
Then there are hundreds of times I've had personal contact with governments on personal matters [as have we all] and we all know what happens in the government department. Well, judging from voting patterns, not everyone realizes what's possible. They moan about the gummint, then vote for more of it, like turkeys voting for an early Xmas.
Nevertheless, for all their warts, it's governments which create the wealth by creating the prerequisite framework, for the creative energy of the populations which are turned loose by the government rules systems. Unfortunately, give them an inch and they take over - the rules systems suffocate little guys and big corporations are able to cope better with the complexity. It's a battle to grow from nothing to big enough to being able to handle the complexity of government demands - most attempts fail.
Here's an example of why I entrust the USA government with my wealth. The USA goes after anyone!
usatoday.com
If Bush leaked the CIA agent's name, he'd be impeached, turfed out and gaoled. Clinton was hauled before a Grand Jury and lied over adultery, but got away with it.
I like that nobody is above the law, or the will of the people as expressed through the various institutions.
Thanks to people like you who have provided and defended the constitution, and framework, for me to enjoy secure contracts. I don't think such people should be conscripted. I think they should be rewarded so much that the government can pick excellent people to perform those vital wealth-enabling functions.
Anyway, you did get me thinking with that little comment. It's a hot button issue with me.
Thanks for what you've done over the decades to make a great country. Sincerely.
But raise your sights. I want a great world. A great country is nice, but a world is what we're on. Squabbling countries with an inadequate rule system is no way to run a railroad. I do NOT want to have barbarian bastards destroying the wonderful Twin Towers, building noocular bombs, blowing up Bali and creating carnage.
NUN Rulz OK,
Mqurice |
