Mark Skousen On How Much Government Do You Really Need

The Financial Survival Network ^ | 03/08/2012 | Kerry Lutz

[appeal2]

Mark Skousen, author and editor of The Journal of Economic Perspectives, is known as a“maverick” of economics for his contrarian and optimistic views, his sometimes-outrageous statements and predictions.

His more unusual predictions include:

Forecasting in the early 1980s that “Reaganomics will work!” Sending a special alert to subscribers of Forecasts & Strategies to “Sell all stocks and mutual funds” on Sept. 8, 1987, just six weeks before the 1987 Stock Market Crash Calling for the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the collapse of Soviet Communism Predicting of the biggest bull market on Wall Street in the 20th century — the 1990s So he was ideally suited to start Freedom Fest which has turned into the largest gathering of freedom seeking libertarians around. We touched on his favorite topic of how much government is just enough and he clued us into the upcoming festivities for FreedomFest 2012 coming up this July in Las Vegas. And we also discussed the best ways to restart real political dialog, which is an exchange of ideals and beliefs, minus the personal attacks and unneccesary we've recently witnessed.

Listen to Mark Now

[appeal2]

The defining question of our times.

[cripplecreek]

A lot less government than I have now would be great.

[WayneS]

We need exactly as much government as is necessary to prevent anarchy, and VERY little more.

Sort of like - Oh, I don’t know - the government our Founding Fathers designed and described in the Constitution of the United States of America.

[Sam Gamgee]

I am currently reading “Man vs the State” by Herbert Spencer. If you didn't know the man was writing this in the 1880s I could have sworn it was a contemporary work. He is so spot on about Toryism, liberalism as the New Toryism, and how government control begets more government control.

He contends that while good intentioned people generations ago would have balked at the idea of the state feeding our children in public schools, that their efforts to make education the duty of the government was destined to progress to further government intrusion.

The government educates our children. Then the government feeds them while at school. Then the government wants to babysit them after school. Then the government wants to get our children into early learning programs. And on it goes.

[servantboy777]

To big, too intrusive, too wasteful, too controlling, too expensive!

Wanna restore America, here's a good start....15% cut in all essential government programs.

Eliminate all nonessential extra constitutional departments of the federal government starting with the EPA, Energy, Transportation, DHS, TSA.

End the war on drugs OR shutdown the freakin border once and for all. Immediately deport all nonviolent illegals.

Put in place a foreign worker program with NO amnesty. 20% surcharge on Monetary transfers to foreign countries.

Reform the tax code. Abolish the IRS!!!

Cut corporate tax rates as well as amnesty for repatriating billions stashed overseas.

Renegotiate trade deals with China, tariffs on goods in the event the Chi-coms refuse to play fair.

There's a start.