"The US State Department says the from 1960 to 1990, the number of state and
local
government employees increased from 6.4 million to 15.2 million, " and so
on
The bit of government that I most wish to decrease is the bureaucracy. I
think that's the bit doing the most interfering. I hadn't heard about the
numbers you cited, Marie. Do you think there's any chance that the increase
in state and local government employees is the result of oversight for
federal monies? For example, if the US Dept of Health decides a campaign
against tobacco use is appropriate and gives a grant to the state of Florida
for this purpose, the chances are that employees will be hired to oversee
and monitor the grant as it is distributed to each of the 67 counties. Each
county will probably need to hire at least one someone to oversee the
program and report back to the state. And so on and so on We didn't elect
any of these people, and we have no input into how the program is
implemented.
You've worked for the state, right Marie? Am I way off base here?