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To: Andy Thomas who wrote (10979)	6/2/1999 11:40:00 PM
From: Neocon	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 17770

1.)The greater the degree of political interference in the economy, the less economic efficiency and the more diluted is consumer sovereignty; 2.) The politicization of an economic sector will increase the power of the most interested parties in the long run, who will use it to cartelize the sector, to the advantage of established firms and the detriment of competition and innovation; 3.) Therefore, government should regulate minimally, merely establishing "rules of the road" and helping with infra- structure, and should limit the use of taxes, tariffs, trade missions, and the like to favor certain outcomes, since they distort the price structure, which is the best means of determining the efficient allocation of resources. 1.) Self- government requires the discipline of the citizenry, to prevent the wholesale descent into faction, or the absorption in private pleasures to the detriment of public duties; 2.) Furthermore, at least a modicum of decency is required to maintain the level of political judgment necessary to elect candidates for office, and to discern the qualities necessary to make a good leader; 3.) Finally, it is necessary to limit the matters that are the subject of political debate, or the polity will never get beyond debates on first principles, or will deteriorate into civil strife. Therefore, there must be a substantial consensus underpinning public life, shared values that are not continually the subject of debate; 4.) Therefore, it is necessary to instill the values of our culture in our children, at home and in school, and to encourage self- discipline as a virtue, rather than glorifying self- expression and the attitude of "whatever floats your boat", and to uphold our fundamental values and the virtue of self- discipline in all relevant forums. 1.) It is more democratic to allow those who are most affected by policy decisions to make the decisions, as when imposing pollution controls on an area; 2.) It is not only more democratic, but it is more efficient, because those closest to the situation are in the best position to calculate trade- offs--- for example, a rich locale might be able to afford more stringent regulations than a poor one; 3.) Also, local control permits greater diversity among population centers, and therefore allows individuals to locate in the most congenial environment; 4.) Finally, such diversity permits a greater degree of policy experimentation, so that we have a better chance to see what works and what doesn't in such areas as crime control and education; 5.) Therefore, decisions should be made at the lowest level of government feasible, and only rise to the next level when it is unfeasible to contain them. And this is called the principle of subsidiarity. The previous argument goes with this as arguments for limited government, which virtually all Republicans subscribe to.