Government not capable of satisfying every human need

February 5, 2010

Anonymous The Laurel Leader-Call Fri Feb 05, 2010, 09:03 AM CST

To the editor:

The LLC reports almost daily on the City’s current financial crisis. That being the case, Ms. Abigail Dean’s plea for the City to provide public transportation borders on delusional. From where does Ms. Dean think the money will come? What services would she recommend the citizens of Laurel forfeit to fund public transportation? Police and fire protection? Sanitation services? Public works? The Municipal Court system? Ms. Dean acknowledges the topic has been previously addressed by the Council with no success, suggesting City Council chooses not to pursue the issue out of fear of opposition or losing their jobs. What about the more obvious explanations: lack of citizen support and insufficient public funds. Any Council member suggesting the taxpayer fund a public transportation system in the current economic environment would deserve to lose his job!

I understand the transportation needs of the elderly and those without vehicles to take them to and from work, and the constraints of such on one’s daily life. However, given the empirical evidence that government does very little efficiently, an expensive public transportation system is not the solution to address these issues. If a “drastic need” does indeed exist, as Ms. Dean leads one to believe, a private sector transportation offering would be viable and much more efficient. The economies of scale would enable commuters to utilize a private service at a rate substantially less than the expense of paying a car note, fuel and insurance on a monthly basis. The only difference between this private sector service and a government sponsored “public” system is the private service would not be “subsidized” by the taxpayer, and only those using the service would pay for it.

The days of looking to the government to satisfy every human need are gone. We are drowning in the debt brought upon by that mindset. We should return to the time when we looked first to family, friends, neighbors, churches and charities to meet the needs of the elderly and infirm. And for the employee without a vehicle, why not consider carpooling with a co-worker and pay them for the service. Many employers offer incentives to employees who carpool.

In closing, perhaps Ms. Dean’s employer, the Salvation Army, should consider providing this transportation service to the community given the demand Ms. Dean suggest exists. Instead of relying solely upon the generosity of others, the Salvation Army could use the profit from this private business enterprise to fund its good works.

– Frances Schwartz

Houston, Texas

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