quarta-feira, setembro 14, 2005

O Estado e as calamidades... (2)

Katrina and the Never-Ending Scandal of State Management
by William Anderson

[...]
For those who maintain that the government "failed" its "mission," I must say that they are wrong. True, the government with its ham-fisted policies of blocking relief missions, imposing price controls, and acting in a dictatorial, but incompetent style, seems to have "failed" in making things better, especially in the days directly after the storm passed. But, if you understand that government is a mechanism by which some people impose their will by force over others, then you would have to admit that the government succeeded and succeeded beyond its own expectations.

Thus, I leave readers with this question: If you believe that the government "failed" in the aftermath of Katrina, will the government then have less or more "authority" when the next disaster strikes? I think all of us know the answer.

You can always expect government to behave exactly like government. When you consider your political position, consider whether this institution ought to be put in charge or disaster relief at all, or the economy, or society, foreign policy, health care, education, courts, the environment or anything at all. Katrina and its aftermath is only the latest exhibit in the ongoing historical documentary in favor of a government-free society.