Big Government Thought Process
From reader Addison, the war on Wal-Mart is heating up. But this isn’t really a post about the War on Wal-Mart, rather it’s a post about this bit of wisdom from the .gov:
Mr. Hubbard noted how effective splitting the difference can be in moving legislation toward a larger goal. “If you give up 80% of what you want to get 20%,” he said, “after five years you will have nothing left to give up.” Mr. Hubbard also noted a quirk in the system that made raising taxes and expanding the Medicaid rolls attractive. With the federal government paying half or more of every dollar spent on Medicaid, states were essentially leaving federal dollars on the table by not expanding the program.
Wal-Mart is falling victim to a war of attrition. But that’s how everything is treated by the .gov that they don’t like. There will never be a repeal of the fourth amendment. The war against it is to nitpick under the guise of reasonable and to keep at it until it is merely a quaint novelty item written by some old dudes over 200 years ago. Same with taxes and gun regulations. At last count, the tax code was 653 sections and near 1,400,000 words. I never thought it was a nefarious plot to just grow the tax code into the monstrosity that it is. In the past, I’d always thought that such attrition was merely the nature of the leviathan that is our .gov or, more reasonably, a function of bureaucratic bungling. Now, thanks to Mr. Hubbard, there are those who engage in this nonsense intentionally. One inch at a time.
February 28th, 2006 at 6:21 pm
There is actually a word that means; “Taking away rights one generation at a time.”
I can’t recall that word, but I learned it in college and it has stuck in my craw since.
Lifetime politicians are keenly aware of the long-term tactic they are employing.
February 28th, 2006 at 8:25 pm
[…] How does Leviathan work? Say Uncle gives us a peek inside the mind of one of Leviathan’s minions. Mr. Hubbard noted how effective splitting the difference can be in moving legislation toward a larger goal. “If you give up 80% of what you want to get 20%,” he said, “after five years you will have nothing left to give up.” Mr. Hubbard also noted a quirk in the system that made raising taxes and expanding the Medicaid rolls attractive. With the federal government paying half or more of every dollar spent on Medicaid, states were essentially leaving federal dollars on the table by not expanding the program. […]