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IN DEFENSE OF
GOVERNMENT INTERFERENCE
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I was having a conversation with some conservative friends the
other night about the homeless problem in San Francisco. Not surprisingly,
they had the solution.
"Round them up and take them to a shelter, and don't let
them out until they're clean, sober and ready to contribute to
society," one of them said as the other nodded in agreement.
They had arguments as to why this wouldn't infringe on civil
liberties. And they had arguments as to how it would work. I didn't agree,
but that's not the point I want to make. I had no miraculous ideas of my own
for our extremely unfortunate homeless problem. Believe me, I wish I did.
What interested me, and what always interests me, is that my
conservative friends were relying on our government to solve the problem,
with taxpayers footing what would obviously be an enormous bill. They
suggested building huge facilities to detain, house, treat and reform any
person found sleeping on the streets.
These are my same conservative friends who despise government
interference in their lives. They want less regulation, less intrusion, less
taxation. Yet when there's a problem like homelessness, who they gonna call?
It's not Ghostbusters, that's for sure.
I've always found this juxtaposition fascinating. For instance,
few conservatives are in favor of national health care. They rant and rave
about government waste, and the high cost to taxpayers. But ask almost
anyone, liberal or conservative, over the age of 65, and you'll get the same
response: "Whatever you do, don't take away my Medicare."
I have a passion for Medicare for All. I strongly believe, just
like national defense and police and fire protection, it is the
responsibility of our government to provide for every citizen's health care.
But until the majority understands that government, for better or for worse,
must be the driving force behind a person's right to health care, it's not
going to happen.
I'm also a capitalist and an employer. Unlike many liberals, I
am not a fan of labor unions. It's one of the few areas where I can bond
with my conservative friends. But again, what they seem not to understand is
that the reason labor unions are not as strong as they once were is because
government has stepped in to provide protections for employees.
Without federal laws, labor unions would thrive, and rightfully
so. But since the 1930's, laws have been enacted for minimum wage, social
security, child labor, workplace safety, age, race and gender
discrimination, unemployment benefits, and most recently, family leave.
It is because of government, and only government, that the
labor unions that most conservatives love to despise, have weakened over the
years. Employees need protection from greedy and sometimes unethical
capitalists, and government and laws are the best answer.
Imagine a scenario with no health inspectors checking out
restaurant kitchens, no building inspectors checking out structural
components, no Centers for Disease Control (CDC), no Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC). I shudder to think of the consequences.
The point I'm making is that government gets a bad rap.
Obviously, like any huge entity, public or private, there's a humongous
amount of waste that is experienced. That's something we can all agree on
and we can all agree that it needs to be constantly addressed.
There are good governmental agencies, efficient and
accomplished, and there are incredibly wasteful governmental agencies,
inefficient and broken. We should be applauding the former, and trying to
fix the latter.
Instead, many of us simply state that the government is out of
control, and needs to be reined in. Government becomes a negative, and
that's where I have a problem.
I like our government. I like the protections it affords me.
I'd love to pay less taxes, but I also love driving on nice roads, and
sending my kids to public schools, and knowing the fire department can get
to my house in three minutes.
So let's not denigrate it, let's continue to try and fix it.
There are plenty of private companies out there that are a mess. Some go
under, and some are fixed. It's all about having the right people in the
right place.
As for the homeless problem in San Francisco, all of us know
there are no easy answers. But there is one thing we do know, and that is
what prompted this column---it's only going to improve with the help of
taxpayer dollars and government assistance. There is no other way, and
that's okay.
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