Government is rather like cancer; it seizes control of the normally healthy parts of society and reprograms them for its own nefarious purposes. In both cases, cancer and government, the uncontrolled growth that results goes on until the host can no longer carry on. The systems shut down and the host, who is now a patient – that would be you and me, dear taxpayer – dies.
While our understanding of cancer has improved over the years, our understanding of out-of-control government has not. Just like in the early stages of cancer treatments, radical surgery is called for to save the life of the patient.
Government is a terrible deal for both individuals and society for at least two reasons.
First, it delivers poor value for the money (witness the extraordinary salaries and retirements taxpayers on now on the hook for with their public “servants.”) And all this during a time when most private-sector jobs have shrunk while companies “downsized” and required their people to do more with less.
Second, government eliminates choice. The bulk of government “services” aren’t “offered” at all; they’re ordered and enforced with penalties. Infractions such as “choice” are dealt with by the agencies own “administrative law” judges. Very handy, isn’t it?
Since individuals have only a limited amount of money and time, when these are consumed by government’s forced “services,” choice in the private sector is reduced and often eliminated. There is less to tax, but the government budget must increase. Taxes on the remaining private sector are increased.
Government today grows primarily in response to special interests. These can be either do-gooders or nefarious schemers. Once government is pressured into enacting their pet project, we the people are forced to pay for it. This is true whether or not we wanted it, could afford it, or whether it does any good. Oftentimes it does more harm than good (the law of unintended consequences).
Unfortunately, once a bureaucracy is established to provide “services” and insure compliance, a new cancer has sprung up. It unerringly senses the pot of gold at the end of the taxpayer rainbow and sinks its roots deep into that fertile soil.
As the new department grows, new causes are dreamed up and funding is sought. More staff are hired. Wages and benefits increase. Fines and penalties increase. And more new causes are dreamed up. The cancer has metastasized.
The cycle ends when the host (taxpayer) dies.
In its more advanced stages, cancerous government bureaucracy actually controls the direction of society. The functions government was originally designed to perform are ignored (border control, property crimes, contract enforcement [see TARP]). Human freedom dies. The host becomes a patient, and a new government bureaucracy is formed to appoint the time and place of the taxpayer’s death. With suitable words of compassion, of course. (Did I mention the estate tax?)
To the new representatives in Congress, America begs of you from her deathbed: The private sector is dying. Cut the money. Cut the money. Cut the money.
Do not get sucker-punched by the socialists in bipartisan clothing. Likewise, remember that the East Coast media exist for the express purpose of providing feel-good strokes to those who embrace the statist approach to governing and join in the socialist politburo game.
There must be no continuing resolutions beyond one week. During that week of funding, you must work to identify and KILL the offending bureaucracies. Do not allow them so much as a line item in the budget, even if zero. They must be eliminated. Fund for one more week and repeat.
After many, many weeks of this treatment, you will have cut out some of the most dangerous and useless parts of the bureaucracy, many still in their early, less dangerous form. They may not at the moment be the most expensive, but they certainly will become so, given time and money.
Next it is time to begin cutting the budgets and cancerous growth of “essential” government agencies. This will be the more difficult, but you will have already made substantial progress in the elimination phase, and the private sector will be buoyed by your efforts. That will be of immense value. And remember: there are many “charities” in America that do nothing but lobby for taxpayer funding for their pet causes. Why not offload the care of the needy to this private sector? They could earn their tax exemptions.
And finally, accept no legislation from the Senate, which can only serve to distract you from your duties. When occupant of the White House finds his executive orders result in the wholesale defunding of pet departments, he will soon cool his executive-order pen and adopt a more conciliatory tone.
