One of the main problems I have is that the larger the federal governmnet gets, the less responsible the state, locals and people become. It's unfortunate, but this entitlement attitude has permeated everything and everybody, creating a society that is completely dependent on others, especially government.
What's ironic is listening to some (like Newt Gingrich) who actually think the Federal Government needs, again, to be retooled and expanded to take on even more responsibility. I was really astounded to hear this from Newt since he has always been an advocate for personal responsibility.
Just from an economic perspective alone, the more we task the feds to do, the less resources that will be available to the states...those most intimately familiar with local problems. While the Feds obviously have a role to play, I don't want so large a federal government that it continues to release others from their responsibilities as citizens and local leaders. This is contributing to parts of the problem we see today.
Perhaps the paragraph below will help explain what is taking place right under our noses. Just as was predicted, the masses are marching in lock step. Although, it appears that many are coming out of their comas. I pray it is not too late.
"The American people will never knowingly adopt socialism, but under the name of liberalism they will adopt every fragment of the socialist program until one day America will be a socialist nation without ever knowing how it happened."
-- Norman Thomas, six-time Socialist Party presidential candidate and one of the founders of the ACLU.