How big should the government be?

raphjd

The government should be as small as it can be while making sure the state functions properly.

cteavin

So,
1/ Objectivists are Minarchists but not all Minarchists are Objectivists.

2/ The Torah and the Talmud are enormous works. Is there a more specific question that you'd like to see than just 'Government'?

well, one example is in Shoftim - Moses' instructions to judges (Deuteronomy 16:19)

19. You shall not pervert justice; you shall not show favoritism, and you shall not take a bribe, for bribery blinds the eyes of the wise and perverts just words.

The Torah verse just seems like a moral commonsense statement. In evaluating a government I suppose it'd be useful but not in deciding what services a government should provide.

According to Wikipedia I actually fall into classic liberalism. I think there's little benefit in the broader vision as it creates dependency on the state which is what we see a lot of now (in the states). However, making sure the food supply and energy are maintained is something I can get behind. (Coincidentally, they just started debating whether or not to make education free in Japan today. Personally, I don't think they should.)

Frederick

@raphjd:

The government should be as small as it can be while making sure the state functions properly.

What if the state doesn't function properly no matter how big or small?

raphjd

That wasn't the question.

If it doesn't work then it needs to change or be overthrown.

Frederick

@raphjd:

That wasn't the question.

If it doesn't work then it needs to change or be overthrown.

I just went back to the original question.
It should be noted that liberals love government to be as big as possible.. controlling every aspect of our lives - much like communism which has been a proven failure around the world. The only way communism works is in a harsh, evil, draconian, dictatorship. A dictator can be good, but that doesn't seem to happen often.

Conservatives prefer government to be minimal, with not much regulation, and plenty of freedom.

Liberal government is for losers. Conservative government is for people who want to live their own lives instead of being an insignificant ant in a colony. It's ironic that liberals rant about slavery.. while at the same time want to be slaves to their government!

raphjd

As we found out with Flint MI and other places, big government doesn't work. For a decade, the EPA failed to spot the problem with Flint's water. If they would have followed their own rules, they would have spotted it within 6 months.

In the UK, the insurance regulator was told by one of the big insurance companies that they were having problems so the regulator told them to sell as many accounts as they could, knowing the company was about to fail. Huge scandal. Anyway, no one was fired or anything. They just changed the name of the regulator and told us to forget all the horrible shit they did. Thank you, Labour (liberal) government.

Frederick

@raphjd:

As we found out with Flint MI and other places, big government doesn't work. For a decade, the EPA failed to spot the problem with Flint's water. If they would have followed their own rules, they would have spotted it within 6 months.

In the UK, the insurance regulator was told by one of the big insurance companies that they were having problems so the regulator told them to sell as many accounts as they could, knowing the company was about to fail. Huge scandal. Anyway, no one was fired or anything. They just changed the name of the regulator and told us to forget all the horrible shit they did. Thank you, Labour (liberal) government.

An interesting thing about Flint, Michigan is.. that is where mega moonbat Michael Moore is from, and where he is STILL based!
HEY MICHAEL! How about doing something about FLINT MICHIGAN? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Moore

jkronfuss

I consider myself a libertarian so you could tell where I am going… less government please. They are amoebas living on my taxes so, less and less.

Frederick

@jkronfuss:

I consider myself a libertarian so you could tell where I am going… less government please. They are amoebas living on my taxes so, less and less.

Around here, they have put up cameras at pretty much all intersections. While that sounds annoying, it is actually great.. because it has vastly reduced the number of cops on the roads. Now they have more time to sit parked in remote places and jack off while watching porn on their laptops.

raphjd

The UK has the most CCTV cameras (not counting speed and red light cameras) per person of any country. This is based on official government figures and doesn't include privately owned stuff.

Frederick

@raphjd:

The UK has the most CCTV cameras (not counting speed and red light cameras) per person of any country. This is based on official government figures and doesn't include privately owned stuff.

I guess people have not read the book "1984" by George Orwell. People don't seem to mind "big brother". I don't like cameras on me - especially when I'm in a restaurant. I can picture someone in India sitting at a cubicle monitoring 20 feeds from a restaurant's cameras.