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Consequences Of Expansion

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 26, 2009

Thomas Friedman seems to think the time is right for Obama to launch massive government programs. (Other Views, Jan. 23). He uses the New Deal and the Great Society as successful examples.

The new deal is 80 years old; the great society, 40.

The success of these social economic experiments should be easily analyzed. We stayed in depression the first two terms of FDR's presidency, so the New Deal didn't provide an economic fix. The crown jewel of the program was Social Security, which is on the road to collapse and will ruin our economy when it does. The Great Society included welfare, Medicare and Medicaid. Are these examples of success?

Although socialism has been tried many times, it has never worked. To believe it would work now, you would have to believe everyone who tried it before was incompetent, but we are competent. It's much more likely the idea is bad.

Big government programs are fraught with corruption and mismanagement. We'll see both, big time, as the bailout and stimulus programs progress.

I wonder what the unintended consequences will be.

PHIL JOHNSON

Valrico

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