But it harks back to what, not so long ago, was a deeply held American conviction that ordinary people could make their arrangements and resolve their problems without armies of experts.
We were a confident people that trusted our common sense and favored the discretion of well-chosen officials acting within a strong system of divided powers over the notion that we're so smart we can regulate life with a zillion antecedent rules. Seth observes that the Constitution runs about 8000 words, making it less than one-third the size of the Obamacare mess.
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