Econ problem 2?

Question

b. Explain the role of government in each of the following situations. Be specific.

i. Military and space expenditures by the government.

ii. Poor families receive surplus agricultural products from a government program.

iii. Legalized gambling is subjected to a Federal excise tax.

iv. Passage of the Sherman Antitrust Act in 1890 (An antitrust law.)

Answer 1

"Government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem." This quote comes to mind every time I hear someone bellyaching about how the government is not doing enough about high gas prices, the mortgage crisis, unemployment, poverty, hunger, and other modern maladies. People who make such complaints obviously believe that government could find the answers to all their problems, if only elected officials would try hard enough.

Since this misguided sentiment is so prevalent among the public, politicians running for office exploit it by making outlandish promises, to include fixing everything that the current officeholders have been unable to do anything about. We see it all the time. Then, when those politicians get into office and don't (or can't) deliver on their promises, the cycle of murmuring begins all over again, with a new batch of candidates rising up and promising all kinds of governmental cures to all that ails society.

It may come as a surprise to some people, but governments do not control everything. They don't control most things. They can't. In fact, history has taught us that whenever governments try to take charge of things that should be left to the free market, matters only get worse. For example, look at what the so-called war on poverty has done to the poor in America. It has inadvertently instilled generations of people with such a sense of entitlement that they depend on government for their livelihoods and have no desire to better themselves. It has created scores of low-rent public housing projects that have become centers for urban blight, and where the truly needy are forced to live along side violent criminals and drug addicts. It has broken up families by encouraging fathers to stay away from their children, resulting in more unwed births and single-parent homes, which in turn have resulted in more kids turning to a life of crime. And the war on poverty is just one example out of many I could have chosen.