Dear Editor,
We often hear in our area that the federal government is too large and attempts (far too often) to find government solutions to problems which would be better remedied through market means. However, in our own county we have a government which engages in similar behavior with little resistance from the public.
How big local government can be any more beneficial than big federal government is beyond me and arguably defies logic. We have county commission candidates who extol the virtues of their own big spending projects and (at least) three sitting commissioners who think being serial property purchasers is a winning proposition. Instead, it would be more rational that given our seemingly small government mindset, we would encourage commissioner behavior which focuses on ways to expand the free market and save (and return) taxpayer dollars.
Our county has relatively empty industrial parks funded on promises of numerous government generated jobs when perhaps our government should focus on getting out of the way and releasing the creative capacity of its residents. Instead of looking within for growth we fund multi-million dollar projects and committees designed to lure in outside businesses. We mock (rightfully) Obama’s assertion that government creates jobs, but embrace our local politician’s allusions to the same ideals.
Ultimately, central planners one mile away are no more effective than the ones one thousand miles away. If we ever hope to spread free-market principles through the state or the nation, we must first start demanding them locally.
Warren Mills
Milton
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Our own county government has big government ideas