Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!mnetor!seismo!lll-lcc!mordor!styx!ames!ucbcad!ucbvax!XX.LCS.MIT.EDU!WLIM From: WLIM@XX.LCS.MIT.EDU Newsgroups: mod.politics Subject: Re: Transportation Message-ID: <12268566053.17.MCGREW@RED.RUTGERS.EDU> Date: Mon, 5-Jan-87 15:46:08 EST Article-I.D.: RED.12268566053.17.MCGREW Posted: Mon Jan 5 15:46:08 1987 Date-Received: Mon, 5-Jan-87 22:54:46 EST Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU Reply-To: WLIM@XX.LCS.MIT.EDU Organization: The ARPA Internet Lines: 81 Approved: poli-sci@red.rutgers.edu To: KFL@MX.LCS.MIT.EDU cc: mcgeer%sirius.Berkeley.EDU@UCBVAX.BERKELEY.EDU, ametek!walton@CSVAX.CALTECH.EDU From: KFL@MX.LCS.MIT.EDU I think there is little point in arguing against statism by asserting that everything the government does gets screwed up. Agreed. The assertion implies that when there exists a government, there exist screw-ups. It seems to be a cope-out by implying that the situation is hopeless. I don't think it is. The majority of it does, but there are occasional successes, which are not surprising considering that trillions of dollars are spent. It is even more surprising that there are successes without such a high price tag. Take for example Singapore. A few years ago (I don't have the latest information) its airline ranked among the top 3 in the world---it was up there with Japan Airlines and Pan Am. SIA (Singapore International Airline) is also very profitable. So is its postal service. It has a good educational system and its state universities are among the best in the region (it also has a small number of private universities). They seem to have a good accountability system e.g. they do act on "customer" complaints in their postal and rent collection services. They do punish incompetent and corrupt government employees. They have effective measures to prevent police officers and other government officials from taking petty bribes (this is still a problem in some countries in that region). Their government has developed and implemented very successful economic plans (this is also true of countries like South Korea, Taiwan and Malaysia). The government has played a very important and active role in making the economy grow at rapid rates. In about 20 or so years, Singapore was transformed from a society that was economically dependent on the presence of a huge British base to a rapidly industrializing, middle-class society. Their new economic plan calls for moving into high tech (AI, biotech, agri-business, wafer processing, etc) and there are also plans to encourage more entrepreneurial participation in the economy. I can also mention the highly successful school system of Iceland (they have one of the highest if not the highest literacy rate in the world) or at a local level, the public school systems of Massachusetts towns like Lexington, Lincoln, or Weston. One can also include the successful school system of Marxist leaning countries like Tanzania which has the highest literacy rate in Africa. Or for that matter, notice how statist countries like China have been able to solve the problem of starvation a lot better than some less statist countries. There seem to be two solutions for tackling the problem of government incompetence---privatization and better accountability. Privatization is feasible only to an extent, there are still things that only the government can do (e.g. maintaining the court system, national defense). Hence the second solution is always needed. I do think that government can be made to do a better job (in those things that only the government can do) if we adopt a good accountability system at all levels of government. I don't see why market-based incentives should not be used inside the government to make it more efficient. Consider a government agency that is supposed to show a profit e.g. the postal service. If it is losing money, fire the person at the top and all his/her closest aides. If the agency makes a profit, give them a reward. Also allow the top guy to take those actions (together with the responsibilities) that any CEO can take e.g. accept whichever bids he/she thinks is the best, hire and fire workers when he/she needs to, cut services when necessary, etc. However not all government agencies have a such clear-cut performance measure. Other measures (I don't know what yet) will have to be developed. (-: However there is a danger of an efficient government, in the wrong hands it can do bad things very efficiently. So maybe we should keep the government in the current incompetent state. That will also keep those who are into government bashing busy. :-) Willie ------- -------