Some people are deluded into thinking that state gov. are somehow superior to a federal government, but the reality is that state and local gov. has less corrective forces than the federal gov., as witnessed in the recent Wake Co. debacle where decidedly unqualified people are steering the ship of the public schools.And now we have the same situation in Texas, where not only Texas schools are affected, but every other school system that buys textbooks from those publishers.http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2010/1001.blake.html
3/13/2010 10:11:45 PM
Well, half of the world is dumber than the average person.
3/13/2010 10:15:07 PM
I don't know half of you half as well as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve.
3/13/2010 10:26:13 PM
^Classic.
3/13/2010 10:29:13 PM
I don't know how the concept small government comes into play with these events. To me, this just looks like the doings of a bunch of moonbats who group logic and reason in the same category as the boogieman. I'm saddened by people who think science and religion are mutually exclusive.
3/13/2010 11:04:47 PM
^ the small government types and the states-rights (the 2 issues mentioned so far) types largely intersectYou're right to point out that this is not necessarily the case though.
3/13/2010 11:08:32 PM
The benefit of small government is not that it is any less susceptible to corruption or damaging politics, but that such damages are more easily correctable. While Wake Co.'s school board is clearly full of children at this point in time, the likelihood of them being around after the next election is vanishingly small, and getting smaller as they proceed to abuse the authority they have been given. Compare this to a nearly 90% incumbency rate in congress despite a <50% approval rating (http://www.opensecrets.org/bigpicture/reelect.php?cycle=2008 and http://www.gallup.com/poll/107242/congress-approval-rating-ties-lowest-gallup-records.aspx). California managed to recall their governor, and hell even Illinois managed to arrest their corrupt governor. Who was the last congressman you can recall that was removed from office or arrested mid term?In addition (assuming when we speak of small government, we are not only talking about number of employees, but also scope and physical area of authority) it is easier to escape the failings of small governments, by taking advantage of the diversity of surrounding governments and options. In the case of Texas, since it is only one state (and likely to be reversed in the future) only publishers sending to that state are affected. Private schools, home schools and schools outside of the state are still able to purchase text books from other publishers and use them to offset the failings of the local government until such time as a change can be made. In addition, it is far easier to move from one state to another to escape political failings, than it is to move from one country to another.Ultimately, the wisdom of small (both in size and scope) government can be seen in asking yourself a very simple question: "Would I want <George W Bush, Barrack Obama, Nancy Pelosi, Glenn Beck, insert other hated member of opposite political views> to have the power and authority to control or dictate these things to me?"[Edited on March 13, 2010 at 11:49 PM. Reason : asdf]
3/13/2010 11:48:51 PM
3/14/2010 12:00:23 AM
3/14/2010 12:20:20 AM
3/14/2010 12:30:03 AM
The answer isn't always "well just move". As I pointed out, it is considerably easier to change small and local governments when they fail the people. However, if your local government is unresponsive to change, then yes I think moving is a perfectly valid thing to do. Or are you seriously suggesting that if North Carolina decided that all schools will now teach that "Jesus rode on dinosaurs and God Himself came down and molded the USA out of the land in His image" you would not consider moving to ensure your child has access to the correct education?But no, the answer isn't always "just move" but in the instances where moving out of the influence of the government becomes necessary, it is far easier to move to another county or state than it is to move to another country, or worse fund an expedition to find a new land upon which to build your own country.
3/14/2010 8:55:33 AM
A little history...
3/14/2010 10:23:50 AM
It may be true that people will not always "vote with their feet," but I think it's better than the alternative. The great thing about federalism is that you can have vastly different sets of laws in two different areas. This helps take into account the fact that bad laws will be made, since humans (and groups of humans) don't always make wise decisions. The problem now is that bad laws get made all the time, but they're often made at the federal level, and every single person in the country has to deal with the consequences. Plus, the bad laws hardly ever get repealed.I think a lot on the left see "state's rights" as a cop out, but it really isn't. It's the tenth amendment.
3/14/2010 2:56:44 PM
3/14/2010 3:40:17 PM
lolz this thread.then go live in russia you stupid fuck. they'll take good care of your ass.
3/14/2010 3:58:49 PM
^ clearly you didn't read the thread, but you're too dumb to understand it anyway.
3/14/2010 4:06:53 PM
3/14/2010 6:02:25 PM
3/15/2010 1:05:41 AM