We Need Activist Government NOW More Than Ever!

So, the past couple of weeks have given us some stark and sometimes troubling reminders why we not only STILL need governments of all shapes and sizes, but also why we need governments that are truly interested in their citizens' well beings when it comes to our economics and environment. Now, I'm not saying we have those kinds of governments across Canada right now, nor am I arguing that in some places this concept isn't under attack, all I want to get across is that there has be a body that is able to go up against corps. and their BS.

Exhibit A: Enbridge's Fun With Photos

In case you  missed it, Enrbidge put out a little animation video a little over a week ago to show people just how safe and care free the sailing would be through the Douglas Channel. I don't want to give this garbage more air time, so I'm not going to link to it here. Instead, I will link to a news article criticizing said video for being a gross oversimplification of the process, not to mention a creative "re-imagining" of what the Douglas Channel actually looks like. The photo above illustrates this. 

Now, the people in BC are a cunning folk, and so someone created a response video showing the real Channel in all it's glory, which is pretty damn good. Still, it begs the question, where was our Federal government on this?  

Of course, we know the answer...they want this project to go ahead and are working to make it happen. But last time I checked, we still had a few environmental regulations left, and somewhere out there are some politicians with enough guts to protect their citizens, while still allowing companies to make money from time to time. Sheesh.

Exhibit B: Don't Ya Just Love Insurance Companies?

I tried to come up with lots of creative ways to introduce this one, but oddly enough the Wall Street Journal summary pretty much hits the nail on the head: "The Progressive Corp. insurance group is defending itself against an onslaught of negative publicity after it tried to avoid paying $75,000 to the family of a client killed in a car crash and sought to blame the wreck on her."

It probably goes without saying that we are used to insurance companies being pretty shifty, not to mention trying their best to get out of serious claims, regardless of their level of legitimacy. This is especially true for our American cousins. What makes this one interesting, is the way swift and sweet internet justice rendered a massive insurance company relatively feeble and in the end they settled a little more quietly than they had planned.

You know what would have been nice though? Some kind of law or regulation that prohibits mega corporations from frivolous legal campaigns, meant to bully and scare people into relenting. Wouldn't that be a nice thing for a government to do? 

Exhibit C: Ummm...Toddler Fight Club?? WTF!?

Those of you who know me at all, know that I save the best for last...so here it is! Some daycare workers in Delaware were filmed encouraging, I shit you not, kids to beat the crap out of each other. We're talking 3 years olds here folks. Now, most sane governments have VERY strong child protection laws, and thus crazy stuff like this is mercifully rare. But its a good reminder of the kind of things that might be far more prevalent in a world without government.

Sure, the market systems have some ways to smooth out some of the crazy, but the laws of supply and demand likely woulda missed this little chestnut, and so I'm glad there was a government in place to actually deal with. Man...people be goin' CRAZY these days! "No pinching...only punching!" F'in nuts!

The Verdict

Think about these three examples with no government to help protect citizens from various kinds of business. We'd likely have more oil spills, way worse insurance companies, and maybe even more "Toddler Fight Club" (dear lord..), and that's just for starters. Things we care about, like clean air to breathe, water to drink, schools for our kids, healthcare for our parents, imagine if these crucial parts of human life were left in a government-less vacuum. 

Oh sure, the super rich would have AMAZING services, but us little people, well, it'd be even tougher slogging. That I'm CERTAIN of.

-exit soapbox-

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