But this logic is not perfect. Our material wealth is built on the government services and infrastructure that only a government is willing to undertake. Indeed, when you look at the cost of educating students, building roads, and keeping our citizens healthy, it seems almost impossible to imagine a company to undertake such tasks.
What the majority of these fiscal conservatives fail to remember is that our government is a provider of last resort – they they only step in when a service is needed and the private sector is unwilling or unable to provide. Furthermore the government has no requirements to turn a profit in the next five, 10, or 20 years. These two factors add up to the need for government spending.
Think of it this way – it was not too long ago the only people to receive an education were the ones who could afford to pay for it, likewise the term “turnpike” comes from the early days of our colonization wherein private individuals would build roads only between locations they felt they could profit off of – they would guard people from recklessly using their road by putting a pole, or pike, at entrances and charging a toll to enter.
Where would our republic be today if we still stuck to this method? Only the rich would educate their children, leaving a dearth of uneducated workers, never being able to live a comfortable middle class. Roads would suddenly stop and companies could not ship to the little burbs and hamlets not connected to the system, leaving millions of people with no access to quality goods.
The argument that non-profits will also provide when the government won’t is bunk as well. Although there are many very good groups that do very good things, they simply can not be everywhere at once. Although one section of the nation may have great access to health care for the poor, what is to say that you will live in that area? Only by creating a federalized system can we ensure that all of the citizens of this nation are healthy. Furthermore, is it fair that Idaho has a great non-profit education system but Utah can’t seem to get its act together? Finally, no organization is more affected by the ups and downs of the market than a non-profit. Indeed look how hard these groups are having at even staying afloat, let alone expanding their reach.
In short we need government spending despite the protests raised by the conservatives of this world. Sure we can set up a system wherein the government only protects its citizens from others, but is this really the system we would want to live in? I prefer one where the citizens live a happy, fulfilling, and comfortable life – not just one where they eek by hoping that one day they make it big – all the while hoping that they have access to infrastructure that will benefit them.
Of course we should make sure that we are spending our money wisely, of course programs that are not working should be changed or dropped, and it goes without saying that pork spending is a bad thing. But just because you don’t like paying for, say meals on wheels, you should still appreciate the fact that this social safety net is there to ensure domestic tranquility and promote the general welfare.
