Tuesday, August 17, 2010

"Limited Government" Is Not A Coherent Political Philosophy

We all want to “limit government.” We just want to limit the parts of government we don’t like. “I believe in limited government” is sort of like saying “I’m against things I don’t think are important.”

Of course, this sort of tautology is a lot more palatable than the alternative where you need to make actual statements about what you value. “I prefer military spending to education.” “I prefer subsidizing business to food assistance.” “I prefer more airport security to environmental enforcement.” “I like roads more than I like medicaid.” It’s a lot safer to stick with code phrases like “limited government.”

Just like "illegal immigration" and "pro-abortion", these are coded term from the Right. No one is for unlimited Government or for illegal immigration or wants more abortions.

Posted via email from liberalsarecool.com

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