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Politics : The Citizens Manifesto -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Road Walker who wrote (465)	5/7/2011 9:55:44 PM
From: TimF	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 492

A few, well thought out, and correctly implemented (and then changed when needed, which is a weak spot of most rule systems) rules help level the playing field. A huge set of complex rules helps tilt the playing field, to those who can influence the rules. Even if the rules are not specifically and directly and/or intentionally set up to support the favored special interests (and often they are), complex rules, even rules trying to be neutral, help the big and entrenched (who can have large amounts of accountants, lawyers, HR people, and specialists of other types to deal with the rules), over new challengers. Sure we need rules. No killing each other, beating each other up, intimidating, extorting or defrauding each other, etc. Rules on that level enable private initiative more than they limit it. We need rules like these on both the legal and the non legal levels (Lack or legislation or regulation in an areas does not mean lack of rules, communities create their own rules that work for them). But millions of pages of rules with almost a hundred thousand new pages every year (just from regulation, and just on the federal level), doesn't level the playing ground, doesn't help the little guy, and doesn't help keep serious problems from happening. Such a huge set of rules, just makes enforcement, compliance, even understanding of the rules more difficult, and diverts efforts away from the more important parts of the rules. It also opens up opportunities for manipulation and rent-seeking, reduces flexibility and ability to adapt to local or changing circumstances, slows down introduction of new ideas, and imposes a massive cost on the economy. The rest of us conform to 10,000 laws a minute for the greater good. No the rest of us "conform to 10,000 laws a minutes (I'll assume your not being literal, but if you where my point would be true in an even stronger way) as part of a process that causes harm, not greater good. (Not harm compared to total anarchy, harm compared to a more reasonable set of laws and regulations).