What should the government pay for?

[Tricky]

This is not a health care thread, (Don't hit me Darat) but it is inspired by it. Lots of people think the government should use taxes to pay for health care. So what DO you think the government (and here I mean any government, not just the US) should pay for? I've included twenty options, pick as many as you like. There is no PlanetX or "other" option because I really needed more categories, so if you have something else, just discuss it.

Off we go.

 

[shemp]

keggers

also a manned expedition to Planet X

 

[Distracted1]

I would find it easier to answer the poll if it had been prased: "What services should the Gov. provide?"
I am in favor of the Gov. providing an army, but am not thrilled with it contracting mercenaries. I am in favor of the Gov. building dams and subsidising expenditures on new power plants- but do not want my utility bills paid out of my taxes.

 

[Tricky]

I would find it easier to answer the poll if it had been prased: "What services should the Gov. provide?"
I am in favor of the Gov. providing an army, but am not thrilled with it contracting mercenaries. I am in favor of the Gov. building dams and subsidising expenditures on new power plants- but do not want my utility bills paid out of my taxes.

Such is the nature of these polls. You can't be exact enough with only twenty options. But if it's any clarification, I was referring to building power plants, not to paying your bill. However, if you're receiving welfare or unemployment, the Gov. is probably helping you pay your bills too.

 

[Roma]

Well it's not really the government paying for it,
it's the taxpayers paying for it.

If a large chunk of your paycheck is going to the government then
the government damn well better provide some services to you.

 

[Thunder]

This is not a health care thread, (Don't hit me Darat)

you're bad!!! bad bad boy!!!!

I voted for everything but "Arts".

is this for ALL govt. entities? or just the Federal govt.?

 

[Chris Hegarty]

I just want more money for the sciences. Student loans are also a must, as are most things on that list. But scientific research is the biggie for me.

 

[Tricky]

is this for ALL govt. entities? or just the Federal govt.?

I tried to make it as general as possible so that it would be internationally applicable. I'm not sure how other countries handle the various breakdowns of countrywide versus regional and local governance.

 

[FlamingMoe]

Who the hell in their right mind thinks national defense is not something taxes should fund??

 

[rdaneel]

Hmmm, so far, on an educational foundation forum promoting critical thinking, schools are in the lead.
You don't think there could be some kind of selection bias here, could there?

 

[quixotecoyote]

If I could redo my vote, I'd probably uncheck arts and farm & industrial subsidies, but they seemed like good ideas at the time.

 

[Arcade22]

Everything but foreign aid, and why should the government do that?

 

[Francesca R]

Who the hell in their right mind thinks national defense is not something taxes should fund??

The argument for an "ultraminimal state" (where the army is privately funded) isn't much different from any other anti-government argument (WRT education, health, infrastructure . . . ): Don't protect people who don't pay for protection by forcing the contribution out of everyone else.

 

[fishbob]

Everything but foreign aid, and why should the government do that?

Who else is gonna do it?

Sometimes, our national interests are well served by aid to foreign countries. In those cases, why shouldn't the government provide the aid?

 

[Francesca R]

(The poll is really too US-centric for me to answer. In a general case "homeland security" isn't different from the military complex, and "medicare" isn't different from health care. There's also an overlap between welfare and unemployment. "Utility projects" makes it sounds like the gummint pays your electric bill . . . . ) Crap poll

 

[Arcade22]

Who else is gonna do it?

Unimportant.

Sometimes, our national interests are well served by aid to foreign countries.

And what interests would that be?

In those cases, why shouldn't the government provide the aid?

The government should only give away 'foreign aid' if it will be repaid in one way or another. And i can't see the third world dumps doing just that.

 

[Dave Rogers]

I'm not American, so I ticked them all.

It's not that simple, of course, but there are circumstances in which any responsible government would be expected to contribute some portion of tax revenues to some expense falling into every category on this list. The problem lies, as I see it, in framing the question as an either/or by category, and saying the government should pay for all items in section A and no items in section B. As with everything else in the real world, context matters.

Dave

 

[DC]

i clicked everything only not "Support of major industries in trouble (bailouts)" because im not sure yet if bailouts are a good idea or if there are other solutions (Nationalizing)

In short the government should pay for everything its citizens want to spend money on.
in most countrys this is hard to know what the people really want, polls arent a very good tool for this, a National vote is a better way i think.

 

[McHrozni]

This is not a health care thread, (Don't hit me Darat) but it is inspired by it. Lots of people think the government should use taxes to pay for health care. So what DO you think the government (and here I mean any government, not just the US) should pay for? I've included twenty options, pick as many as you like. There is no PlanetX or "other" option because I really needed more categories, so if you have something else, just discuss it.

Off we go.

Are categories here meant as which of these the government should pay for exclusively, or participate alongside other partners where applicable?

For example I think the government should be the sole payer of the military, but not student loans, although I think it should finance some of those as well. Do I check both or just the military?

McHrozni

 

[Bob Blaylock]

In short the government should pay for everything its citizens want to spend money on.

In the vast majority of cases, it is better to let the individual citizens spend their own money on the things that they want it spent on; with there being no reason for government to be involved at all.