Chapter 7: Governmental Paraducers

My belief is that the growth of Paraducers in our society, and their dependency upon Producers, is causing a drag on our economy and social structure. We will look at several specific examples in what follows, but first I want to point out the largest den of Paraducers: Government. Not exactly a Consumer, and certainly not a Producer, government facilitates many interactions between people, countries and companies, and exacts a toll or tax on every transaction. Government is the ultimate Paraducer, forcing on us many services that we can either do without or get cheaper from others, insinuating itself into every situation as the most important party, taking its cut of the action off the top, and preserving its role through law and regulation and payoffs to citizens.

I’m not arguing against government, and I am no anarchist, but we do have a problem. James Madison said in the Federalist Papers, No. 51:

“But what is government itself, but the greatest of all reflections on human nature? If men were angels, no government would be necessary.”

The negative character of human behavior I term ‘Paraducer’ is reflected all too well by our government today.

To get a feel for the progression of America through its national cycle, it helps to look at the size of government. The US Census Bureau publishes statistics on government employment and of course population. I have charted total federal, state, and local government employment and total US population since the 1940’s. The trend is amazing.

Since the 1940’s, government employment has been increasing at a rate much faster than the general population, as you can see. From about 1975 until today, the trend has slowed, due to budgetary limitations caused by recessions, and efforts to get control of the growth of government. It has also slowed because society as a whole is chafing at supporting so much nonproductive activity in government.

Doesn’t it make perfect sense that the bloom of the Paraducer societal drag has paralleled the growth of government employment?

Remember that government produces little that is new or unique. It only shuffles resources from Producers to non-Producers. Private contractors created even much of the innovation in the space program.

Certainly many government functions are necessary and are best done by a publicly funded and controlled entity, such as the military (in which we can find numerous dedicated Producers). But many of government’s activities can be carried out more efficiently by the private sector, including road construction and maintenance, law enforcement and incarceration, waste disposal, postal services, etc.

I expect that it was not always this way. I have a letter from the Secretary of the Navy to my father on the occasion of his discharge from the service in 1945, after the end of World War II. It reads thus:

The first of the US Navy’s super carriers was christened the Forrestal after the author of this letter. Accomplishment of the feats outlined by this Secretary of the Navy could not have happened without the contributions of so many Producers, one of whom was my father. The pride of this victory cannot be felt by Paraducers or Consumers who remained behind, perhaps not even today, but that pride belongs to the Producers who created victory out of scraps of copper saved by our grandparents.

Since then, government has spiraled into a colorless, formless stupor. The indecision of the Vietnam era, the economic incompetence of the 1970’s, and the malaise of the Carter years are the gray lowlights of its achievements. The government achievements of the 1940’s are long gone. Expressions of pride in the military and its accomplishments are condemned by Hollywood Paraducers.

This macro view of government Paraducerism is the simplest big picture of what is happening to America. We now have nearly 14% of our population working for an outfit that produces no products, but only takes out the trash, sends free money to millions, and delivers letters.

A main Paraducer tactic is expanding the system to give them more power. Every event in life is an opportunity for a government Paraducer to extend his control and power. Need some examples?

The September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on America were a golden opportunity for Paraducers to do just that. I would never say that any patriotic citizen of the US would wish for such a tragedy, but Paraducers are creatures of opportunity, and they see that opportunity in every news story, good or bad.

Shortly after the attacks, Congress passed the Patriot Act. Sorry to disappoint the conspiracy theorists in the audience, but I’m not going to rail against the Patriot Act as a deconstruction of our American rights. It might be that, but the true Paraducer skunk scent is not so deep. It is right on the surface, and measured in dollars.

You see, in 2003 the US Attorney General, John Ashcroft, went on a public tour to promote the Patriot Act, visiting thirty-some cities. This tour cost the taxpaying Producers $210,976.10, as far as the Government Accountability Office could tell. ^[15]

Note that I’m not discussing the actual costs of implementing the Patriot Act itself, but only the cheerleading tour by the Attorney General. He looked great in that skirt, waving those pompoms, but what did I get for my money? The report detailing these costs runs to 29 pages, and lists five contributing GAO authors as well as two managers. I expect the report cost at least $30,000 to write and research.

For implementing the actual Patriot Act, the Congressional Budget Office estimated in 2001 that the cost would start at $156 million in 2002 and rise to $227 million annually by 2006. ^[16] Do you feel $200 million safer?

Government (through Congress) jumped all over the terrorist attacks as an opportunity to expand government, and extend its power and the depth of its claws in our lives. Perhaps the claw is not the proper analogy. More like a porcupine quill, designed to penetrate flesh, but barbed so it’s impossible to remove without ripping that flesh to shreds. We will never be rid of the Patriot Act, never. We will never be rid of the costs of it, either, and in just a few years it will rise to over $300 million per year. Once again, this discussion does not even touch the freedom vs. safety Patriot Act debate.

Certainly the terrorist attacks demanded some action by Congress, and it costs money to protect our country. But government uses any excuse whatsoever to interfere in our lives. For example, take the price of gasoline.

In 2005, Hawaii plans to implement gasoline price caps, to help relieve the pricing pressure on drivers on the islands. Despite the outcry from free market advocates and the governor, the price caps are moving toward implementation in September 2005.

Hawaii’s own governmental web site shows a chart indicating clearly that US average gas prices today are about a third lower (in level dollars) than they were during the oil embargo in the late 1970’s. That is, gas prices as compared to other prices are lower now than 25 years ago. But the Hawaiians appear to believe a socialist solution will work.

Now you and I know that price controls may cap the price of gasoline, but excess costs borne by gasoline producers (Hawaii has two refineries) will be shifted to other customers, and ultimately back to the consumer through less efficient routes, resulting in higher overall prices. Or there may simply be a gas shortage if the producers refuse to supply at the capped price. On top of those costs are the administrative charges of government to implement, monitor, and enforce the price caps, and we all know who pays those. Don’t you know that the people of Hawaii pay more per gallon for bottled water than for gasoline?

Here’s the cherry on top: Hawaii has the highest gasoline tax of all 50 states, about 53 cents per gallon in 2002. ^[17] Price caps are the last thing that Hawaii needs. They need a tax cut.

Just two examples, a huge one (terrorism) and a small one (gas prices) show us how government pushes deeper into our lives, lurching for more control and money. Think a moment and you will see some examples in your own town. Rampant growth in my area will have the County soon crying for expanded water and sewer facilities. Rising medical costs in 1993 prompted government Paraducers to attempt a total takeover of health care. Declining demand for train service caused government to create the money wasting Amtrak, shuttling passengers at a loss on many tickets. Bad investments in the savings and loan industry were an opportunity for government Paraducers to step in, be the heroes, and ‘bail out’ the industry with zillions of dollars of Producer cash. See the pattern?