In this post, Professor Bryan Caplan reflects on the so-so-common response of people when they spot a problem: “The government should do something!”
The inspiration for the post is Caplan’s stay in Palermo, Italy, with its filthy streets. Shouldn’t the government levy more taxes to fund a clean-up program? Ah, but it turns out that the government is already doing that! People pay taxes and the government runs a miserably ineffective clean-up program.
Caplan wisely concludes, “If you can’t trust government with the basics, you are foolish inded to trust them with anything more.” Right, and government officials depend on on that foolishness.
Hat tip: Don Boudreaux