Progressive Wonkism
So, I don't like having to pump water by hand, or carry my farm produce to market with a horse and wagon, and I don't like paying tolls on the turnpike. I encourage my representatives to support land grants to railroads. It's great to have all these long and fast railroads, especially now that they've begun competing directly with one another. They tried cooperating, but that doesn't seem to work out, so they now they've integrated large systems. The freight traffic East is great, but the railroads don't like sending empty cars West and they seem to prefer regular traffic, so they started using differential pricing schemes and that irks me because it doesn't seem fair. Anyhow, now that we have railroads, cheap coal, and steam-powered factories, I think I'll move into the city and get one of those high-paying factory jobs.
Well, I don't like all that Trust and rebate business, so I tell my representative to regulate the hell out of those railroad guys. And I started supporting my local Wheelmen's Association. We are trying to get my representative to support public road building. In fact, this is great: let's build roads everywhere so it makes it cheap and easy to drive my new car. You have to have government build roads - a private road would have to charge fees, and everyone knows there's no way to feasibly operate a road that way! Now that I have this car, I think I'll move out to the suburbs. It's great out here, I'm away from the noise and pollution in the city, even though I spend two hours in the car. I can't say that I like the size of my gas, income, and property taxes, but as long as I don't have to toil on the farm or in the factory any more, I can live with it.
Apparently my neighbors like it, too, because now everyone is moving out here. Sure, it takes hours to get to any store, especially during rush hour, but ... hey! what the heck is happening to these gas prices! This is making me mad as hell. We need government to do something about this illegal gouging! It's not like I have a choice: I *have* to pay for gas. Anyhow, as I was sayin... gee, it sure is warm out here. Y'know, I was reading about how cars are responsible for the Greenhouse Effect, and how we would all be better off if we simply had a high tax on fuel like they do in Europe. But that'll be hard on poor people, so we need a program that will reimburse them for their gas tax payments. And also, it would be better if we had more public transport and rail systems like they do in Europe. Here, we leave that stuff to the free market, so only rich people can afford those things.
Wouldn't it be nice if we simply all went to using bicycles and using a less energy intensive lifestyle? For example, if we all lived on small farms, and used low intensity or renewable energy sources, like vegetable, animal, wind, or people power, to haul our goods to market? But we won't be able to get there because that fascist bastard George Bush has built this huge federal government system for his buddies in the oil business, and they won't let us. And worst of all are those crazy libertarians who think that you could actually have things like private roads. Don't they realize that optimizing social welfare and efficient use of resources requires government intervention because of the Prisoner's Dilemma? And don't give me any of that state's rights crap - it's obvious on it's face that one government agency is more efficient than 50 state agencies. Bigger organizations are always better because of scale economies.
And don't give me any of that slippery slope baloney: We could cure what ails our government simply by electing Democrats, because Democrats are against subsidies to Big Business. Instead of providing corporate welfare to Big Pharma (Merck), Big Oil (BP), and Big Agriculture (ADM), Democrats would improve social welfare by spending it on free health care and drugs, solar power, and ethanol, because that's what we need now. Well, that and high tariffs to stop imports in order to help poor people in Third World nations while protecting our own manufacturing laborers and farmers because those are the best jobs. Instead of building a huge, military, fascist state, Democrats would build a nimble, responsive, democratic system -- financed by taxes on the rich -- to help fight poverty, save people from their own poor judgment, and curb the unfortunate results of hyperindividualism.
Just give me a few minutes to tick off all of the programs that will be required to produce this utopia, and don't worry about unintended consequences. I've thought of all of them. Well, this has me a little perplexed (watch the linked video), but anyhow ....
Well, I don't like all that Trust and rebate business, so I tell my representative to regulate the hell out of those railroad guys. And I started supporting my local Wheelmen's Association. We are trying to get my representative to support public road building. In fact, this is great: let's build roads everywhere so it makes it cheap and easy to drive my new car. You have to have government build roads - a private road would have to charge fees, and everyone knows there's no way to feasibly operate a road that way! Now that I have this car, I think I'll move out to the suburbs. It's great out here, I'm away from the noise and pollution in the city, even though I spend two hours in the car. I can't say that I like the size of my gas, income, and property taxes, but as long as I don't have to toil on the farm or in the factory any more, I can live with it.
Apparently my neighbors like it, too, because now everyone is moving out here. Sure, it takes hours to get to any store, especially during rush hour, but ... hey! what the heck is happening to these gas prices! This is making me mad as hell. We need government to do something about this illegal gouging! It's not like I have a choice: I *have* to pay for gas. Anyhow, as I was sayin... gee, it sure is warm out here. Y'know, I was reading about how cars are responsible for the Greenhouse Effect, and how we would all be better off if we simply had a high tax on fuel like they do in Europe. But that'll be hard on poor people, so we need a program that will reimburse them for their gas tax payments. And also, it would be better if we had more public transport and rail systems like they do in Europe. Here, we leave that stuff to the free market, so only rich people can afford those things.
Wouldn't it be nice if we simply all went to using bicycles and using a less energy intensive lifestyle? For example, if we all lived on small farms, and used low intensity or renewable energy sources, like vegetable, animal, wind, or people power, to haul our goods to market? But we won't be able to get there because that fascist bastard George Bush has built this huge federal government system for his buddies in the oil business, and they won't let us. And worst of all are those crazy libertarians who think that you could actually have things like private roads. Don't they realize that optimizing social welfare and efficient use of resources requires government intervention because of the Prisoner's Dilemma? And don't give me any of that state's rights crap - it's obvious on it's face that one government agency is more efficient than 50 state agencies. Bigger organizations are always better because of scale economies.
And don't give me any of that slippery slope baloney: We could cure what ails our government simply by electing Democrats, because Democrats are against subsidies to Big Business. Instead of providing corporate welfare to Big Pharma (Merck), Big Oil (BP), and Big Agriculture (ADM), Democrats would improve social welfare by spending it on free health care and drugs, solar power, and ethanol, because that's what we need now. Well, that and high tariffs to stop imports in order to help poor people in Third World nations while protecting our own manufacturing laborers and farmers because those are the best jobs. Instead of building a huge, military, fascist state, Democrats would build a nimble, responsive, democratic system -- financed by taxes on the rich -- to help fight poverty, save people from their own poor judgment, and curb the unfortunate results of hyperindividualism.
Just give me a few minutes to tick off all of the programs that will be required to produce this utopia, and don't worry about unintended consequences. I've thought of all of them. Well, this has me a little perplexed (watch the linked video), but anyhow ....
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