Did privatization drive us to the fiscal cliff?
I posted this in a thread about privatization. I'm hoping to get some DU feedback on this idea.
Republicans warn us that we face a fiscal cliff.
Republicans cannot have it both ways.
If privatization is saving us money, we are not facing a fiscal cliff.
If privatization is costing us a lot of money, then maybe we are facing a fiscal cliff.
We did not face a fiscal cliff when we hired civil servants and government employees to do the work we now privatize.
That is historical evidence of the failure of privatization.
It appears to be costing us taxpayers more than letting our government do its work would.
People complain that government makes such a mess of things. They never mention the Exxon Valdez, the many mining accidents, the BP spill, many pipeline spills, train derailings, gas company explosions, lawsuits over products that kill, pharmaceuticals that aren't properly tested, cigarettes that cause all kinds of illnesses -- and how the cigarette companies hid their research on their own products. The list goes on and on -- insurance companies that don't pay for needed medical care. The list of messes, catastrophes and deaths caused by private companies is extraordinarily long.
I forgot a big one -- asbestos. The government bought asbestos to use in the shipyards for submarines in WWII. The asbestos was privately mined. Somewhere along the way scientists and the asbestos companies learned that asbestos caused serious illnesses. The asbestos companies continued to sell it. I won't bore you with the details. There are many law cases about asbestos. You can look them up on Findlaw. That was not an example of privatization, but rather an example of an outrageous mess caused by private companies.
Meanwhile, on very limited budgets, our police, fire departments, schools, highway departments and many, many other government agencies are there, serving us, making few errors, cleaning up after us and after the big corporations.
The Coast Guard proved itself after the BP spill. Again and again, big corporations make a mess, and leave it for government to clean up. Climate change is one of those big messes.
We need a balance between the private sector and the government. Each has its role to play. Privatization of government work such as oversight of the private sector is a horrible idea. Food stamps, for example, should be administered by the government, not by a private company.
Government can do a much better job of delivering relief aid in emergencies if given a chance. The more we privatize, the more we pay. We can see that in the effect of privatization on our military costs.
Lauding privatization has become the mantra of the right. In that respect, the right is very, very wrong.
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