Lots to digest here. The idea of decentralization has been playing in Canada for most of the 20th century. Canada is probably the most decentralized Federation in Western culture. The provinces run their own education, health, immigration and in the case of Quebec even levies its own taxes (Quebecers INSANELY pay a Federal AND Provincial income tax). It has its pros and cons but in gigantic countries like Canada and USA it makes no sense to have, say, a Fisheries minister in Ottawa dictating to Newfoundland how to fish their own stock.
This is the point of small government. To me, it's removing the redundancy. There are layers and layers of bureaucracy that have NO BUSINESS existing.
Is that extreme? Of course not. When we feel fat like Jabba the Hut we need a Princess Leia to choke us.
As for the 8%, that's bloody hilarious. Socialists, communists, and the like I'm sure. No one in their right mind would think government is too small. Though, in a way, they're right in the sense relative to how many laws and regulations there are, the government lacks a lot of resources to enforce them.
It's interesting, I should add, that while the Prime Minister has much more power than the President - the PM passes laws as he pleases if he has a Majority government - the Premiers of the provinces at First Ministers conference tend to gang up on the PM thus giving the impression Canada is in fact 10 provinces and the Nunavut Territory. They can neuter the PM.
Alas, in the end, Ottawa still hold powerful purse strings.
The problem, I guess it's a problem, is that both provinces and states in the U.S. rely in some case on Federal cash/transfer payments.
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Lots to digest here. The idea of decentralization has been playing in Canada for most of the 20th century. Canada is probably the most decentralized Federation in Western culture. The provinces run their own education, health, immigration and in the case of Quebec even levies its own taxes (Quebecers INSANELY pay a Federal AND Provincial income tax). It has its pros and cons but in gigantic countries like Canada and USA it makes no sense to have, say, a Fisheries minister in Ottawa dictating to Newfoundland how to fish their own stock.
ReplyDeleteThis is the point of small government. To me, it's removing the redundancy. There are layers and layers of bureaucracy that have NO BUSINESS existing.
Is that extreme? Of course not. When we feel fat like Jabba the Hut we need a Princess Leia to choke us.
As for the 8%, that's bloody hilarious. Socialists, communists, and the like I'm sure. No one in their right mind would think government is too small. Though, in a way, they're right in the sense relative to how many laws and regulations there are, the government lacks a lot of resources to enforce them.
It's interesting, I should add, that while the Prime Minister has much more power than the President - the PM passes laws as he pleases if he has a Majority government - the Premiers of the provinces at First Ministers conference tend to gang up on the PM thus giving the impression Canada is in fact 10 provinces and the Nunavut Territory. They can neuter the PM.
ReplyDeleteAlas, in the end, Ottawa still hold powerful purse strings.
The problem, I guess it's a problem, is that both provinces and states in the U.S. rely in some case on Federal cash/transfer payments.
There's a lot of Federal cash going to the states in various ways.
Delete