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is it universally agreed that government is inefficient?

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?

  • right leaning - yes, govt is inefficient

  • right leaning - no, govt is not inefficient

  • left leaning - yes, govt is inefficient

  • left leaning - no, govt is not inefficient

  • centrist - yes, govt is inefficient

  • centrist - no, govt is not inefficient

Results are only viewable after voting.
What's more inefficient - a public school with a budget of 2 million dollars and some extra protections causing inefficiency that educates kids, or a Wall Street firm with a 2 billion operation designed to do nothing but extract wealth from society adding no value, with nice big bonuses, done 'efficiently'?
 
Craig234 said:
What's more inefficient - a public school with a budget of 2 million dollars and some extra protections causing inefficiency that educates kids, or a Wall Street firm with a 2 billion operation designed to do nothing but extract wealth from society adding no value, with nice big bonuses, done 'efficiently'?
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What bailed Wall Street out? Who were the people behind it? Were they pro-government or anti-government?
 
So what’s worse..an inefficient government or an efficient corporation taking profits…seems like they both equal each other in the end…
 
Maybe "efficiency" needs to be redefined?

Are we talking about the lazy lackluster "file in triplicate" government agencies, or are we simply talking about FAST.

I think the government is both slow (good) AND inefficient (bad).

But, as slow as it is, constant pressure still gets it to move in one direction or another, as our current situation has proven.

Dampers only prevent fast change, they do not prevent change itself.
 
tydas said:
So what’s worse..an inefficient government or an efficient corporation taking profits…seems like they both equal each other in the end…
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Actually, they don't.

Inefficiency can always be attacked - often to the point of destroying good programs.

"Inefficiency" is one of those hot buttons for people on the right, making them turn red and steam come out of their ears, like saying 'little girl' to a feminist.

It causes rage so that they don't have perspective on what actually are the best options, which sometimes are 'inefficient'. People who govern get that, ideologues don't.
 
Craig234 said:
Actually, they don't.

Inefficiency can always be attacked - often to the point of destroying good programs.

"Inefficiency" is one of those hot buttons for people on the right, making them turn red and steam come out of their ears, like saying 'little girl' to a feminist.

It causes rage so that they don't have perspective on what actually are the best options, which sometimes are 'inefficient'. People who govern get that, ideologues don't.
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LMAO!!!! Based on your post it's a hot button for you as well. Could it be that you're an ideologue that doesn't get it too?
 
HomerJS said:
The co equal braches of government was designed to be inefficient.

Dictatorships are efficient.

As for the size of government people who bitch the loudest about shrinking it's size love it's size when one of their pet concerns is involved.
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let's start with 1% cuts across the board. every department including defense? no, that will never happen. people would riot and loot. we'll just keep spending until we fall, hard.
 
It depends on the definition of efficiency, and what specific part of government we're talking about.

In terms of cost to produce, the government would always be less efficient. In terms of end cost to the user, the government can be more efficient, especially in industries where there are massive barriers to entry and a very steep demand curve. An example here is health care.

From societies' perspective, if we are defining efficiency in terms of the total benefit to society less the total cost of capital, there are also instances where the government can be more efficient. One big example here is education.

The biggest defining factor though is what your goals are. Certain goals lend themselves to the private industry, while others necessarily lend themselves to the public one. For example: how do you spur innovation by protecting intellectual property without the government?
 
Most yeah's are right or center. Big surprise eh? Asking a left leaner whether or not govt is efficient is about as efficient as govt.
 
BlahBlahYouToo said:
layers and layers of bureaucracy, excess, unnecessary red tape and waste, isolated from market competition so there's no incentive to operate more efficiently, etc.

is there any argument against this?
enlighten me please.
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It's just as bad as any other big organization. One of my coworkers noted that it probably takes $500 worth of time and effort to authorize a $50 software purchase. You need to find the exact name of the software you are looking for, fill out the request sheet, have your boss sign it, have his boss sign it, IT looks at it, then IT buys it and installs it on your computer. The entire process takes at least a week. Geek Squad ain't got shit on this level of inefficiency.

edit:
I don't work for the government. I work for a private company that is profitable at this time.
 
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Of course it is inefficient. But there are many corporations that are just as inefficient. And I'm sure there may be some government departments that are run in an efficient manner.
 
dank69 said:
Of course it is inefficient. But there are many corporations that are just as inefficient. And I'm sure there may be some government departments that are run in an efficient manner.
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I really doubt that there are any corporations that are as inefficient as the government. It's much easier for a corporation to fire clowns that don't do their jobs.
 
Government is inefficient. To do the things it should do, it almost has to be inefficient. That's why it should do only those things which the private sector cannot.
 
BoberFett said:
Government is inefficient. To do the things it should do, it almost has to be inefficient. That's why it should do only those things which the private sector cannot.
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which is exactly why government contractor exist. they can provide services more efficiently than the gov.
I've worked for various contractors here in DC for the last 20 years. spent a lot of my time on on jobs at the state dept. night and day between government workers and contractors.
The private sector will evaluate and "trim the fat" almost annually shrinking and growing to accommodate the workload.
This never happens in the government, they just shuffle people around (cushy gov jobs everyone wants). I've seen so many people in gov just sitting around for days doing nothing but web surfing and reading.
 
dank69 said:
You and your wife have personally seen how every single corporation conducts its business?
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Don't be an ass. If you want to defend government inefficiency then go ahead and do it, but don't use a fail argument that anyone with any practical experience in government and business knows is a joke.
 
monovillage said:
Don't be an ass. If you want to defend government inefficiency then go ahead and do it, but don't use a fail argument that anyone with any practical experience in government and business knows is a joke.
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Just so we're clear, you think it is impossible that some company somewhere is more inefficient than the government?
 
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