What Can Our Government Do For Us?

In reply to: First Lady: Childhood Obesity Threatens National Security | Homeland Security, and the third comment, in particular.
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As to whether the US government has any role to play in the health and welfare of Americans, I think that ship has already sailed. How much of a role has and always will be determined by the politicians we elect to represent us. Now, I want those I vote for to use the power I lent them to speak up about issues like this, just as I would were I elected. Obviously the person who commented above me feels differently.

I'm really not so sure that the issue of obesity is political, in the sense that much of anyone in any political party is in favor of it. At best, it's a question of whether or not one believes that we should empower the people we elect to spend tax dollars or political capital on combatting it, or leave individuals to fend for themselves without the guidance and resources that the government can provide. And there we simply disagree.

All I can say to those who feel that government has no place in this issue is that you needn't avail yourselves of those resources if you don't want to. It would be nice if we could all allocate where we each want our tax dollars to be spent, so that you and I wouldn't have to pay for anything we each don't value or believe our government should be doing, but instead we elect people to do that on our behalf. And right now the people that we elected are willing to put money into helping us stay healthy, which you don't like but I do, as well as some things that you like more than I... That's just the way it goes in a representative democracy...
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Submitted for moderator approval 2/21/2010, 9:06 AM (IM blog time)