More on the Bridge -- Political Thoughts

Thomas Sewell hits the ball out of the park with this article on the bridge collapse.

Government should fundamentally be about boring things, maintaining order, peace, civility, etc. Yet, government has become about much more. Government is the means to the end of all problem solving. Got poverty? Let government eradicate it. Got problems on the farm? Let government subsidize it. Got sorrow? Let government promise to build a society that will change everything for you. Yet, government does not exist in a vacuum. It is made up of fallen human beings who long for the same glory that those outside of government long for. Folks that make it big in government just often have bigger toys with which to play. Instead of maintaining bridges (which is boring), folks in government promise new ones. Instead of restraining true evil that can tear down the fabric of society (which is divisive), folks in government avoid calling much of anything evil. This is one reason why 9/11 was such a tremendous event in the post-modern world. Something was categorically called evil by so many. But, I digress.

While considered crazy by most, I favor the privatization of bridges and roads. It all boils down to incentives. What incentive would a private investment group have had to build well and maintain the Minneapolis Bridge? The same goes for roads. The return on investment comes through measures such as tolls. Such a measure ensures efficiency as it is pure pay for play and eliminates freeriding. Compulsive taxation is then lowered and more money is available to invest into the economy and new businesses.