People who put faith in government to solve national or even individual
problems are headed for deep disappointment, if it hasn't already arrived.
Still, that doesn't stop politicians from attempting to sell political snake
oil to the gullible. No one ever lost money betting on the ignorance of the
uninformed masses.
What should be required viewing before the election is "John Stossel's
Politically Incorrect Guide to Politics," a "20/20" report critical of the
U.S. government's ability to get things done (abcnews.com). The report
looked at facts, not opinions, or "feelings" concerning government's
inability to live up to the high expectations caused by over-promising
politicians.
Stossel visited New Orleans to see how government reconstruction is
progressing three years after Hurricane Katrina. What he found should not
surprise anyone. Huge numbers of houses remain un-repaired thanks to a
bureaucracy that could serve as a plot for a horror movie called "Nightmare
on Bourbon Street." The forms necessary to apply for permits to conduct any
repairs or construct new buildings take 10 minutes to explain. As for the
houses themselves, "Of the 314 public projects (New Orleans Mayor Ray) Nagin
promoted in his 'One New Orleans' rebuilding campaign announced in January
2006, only six are complete."
Contrast that with what the nonprofit Habitat for Humanity has done: "They
built 70 homes quickly," noted Stossel. "Even Nagin admitted they did what
government didn't." Private enterprise has succeeded, where government has
failed. Actor Brad Pitt ("Brad Pitt has done more for this community than
anyone," said Malik Rahim, one of the co-founders of Common Ground
Collective, a group formed in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina) and
singer Harry Connick Jr. have been at the forefront of efforts to circumvent
government stagnation.
Stossel asked the obvious question: If Pitt and Connick can help build
dozens of new homes, why does it take government so long to follow through
on its plans? Nagin explains he's made it easier for people to rebuild their
homes, providing permits online at kiosks throughout the city.
Stossel visited city hall and guess what? Not one of the kiosks worked!
Conclusion? Individual Americans do things better, with less bureaucracy and
at less cost than the central planning collective known as government.