| NOT Provide! |
| The Constitution's preamble states that government's proper role is to "promote the general welfare". While there are provisions in the Constitution (article 1 section 8) defining that the government has the power to provide for the general welfare, does this mean that government should perpetually be using that power? |
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| The Federal Government has the power to provide for the general welfare. However, just as bulldozer can drive right thru your house, only under unusual circumstances should it exercise this power -- such as in natural disasters or other general emergencies. |
| Beyond very limited emergency situations, government's role should be to limited to the constitutional defined role of promoting policies that help everyone provide for themselves. In the case of welfare for the disadvantaged or poor, government could promote policies that for families, extended families, communities, private sector businesses and/or charities to provide these needs, rather than putting government in the business of directly providing such benefits to people thru ever expanding welfare programs that create more faith in government than in god and the good people of the nation. |
| By promoting various social marketplaces to provide welfare services, the recipients of such service or charity are put in proper contact with those who are responsible for providing the charity or service. Under such a system of welfare (welfare in the broad sense of what is good for all), politicians are positioned in their proper role of promoting the general welfare and are removed from their propensity to provide the public largess to special interests in return for a long and prosperous political career. 8/2/96 |