Government is natural corrupting device, at least in a highly centralized form. To expect that a Federal or central gov't to act in a manner that promotes decency and values is impossible. The cases in which this has been done are rare, and are temporally-challenged.
On the other hand, local gov't can provide a little more of this, as long as there is an active and engaged populace. However, many communities don't care about local gov't. As a result, they engage in "proxy" decency. Most of the time, it ends up in abject failure.
I agree about limited zoning laws, and tax-exemptions for charities.
As for zoning, it is worth going to Mexico, where no zoning exists. There is a certain charm to this scenario, and one could argue that there is no apparent problem with the situation. Most of the "problems" that you would point to are not so much problems of a lack of gov't, but rather of an overly corrupt, and highly centralized one that continues to engage in poverty-promoting policies (how alliterative!). |
