Winning over those who say it's impossible to greatly reduce the size of the gov't

[dagnybell]

Here's a link to a great article that tells how New Zealand rolled back it's centralized government and did away with many unnecessary departments and regulations. It can be done and it will have positive results!

"Rolling Back Government: Lessons from New Zealand"

http://www.hillsdale.edu/news/imprimis/archive/issue.asp?year=2004&month=04

It's a long article, but well worth the read.

[angrydragon]

Cool.

[jstmike]

That looks like a great article but I went to take a look at their balance sheet and I don't see any cuts in the last couple of years in fact the expenses increased each year.

http://www.treasury.govt.nz/government/financialstatements/yearend/jun07/fsgnz-year-jun07.pdf

Take a look at the Historical Information.

[dagnybell]

That looks like a great article but I went to take a look at their balance sheet and I don't see any cuts in the last couple of years in fact the expenses increased each year.

These changes were initiated in the '80s. I haven't had the opportunity to study this in depth, but you're right they have slid back a bit. (You have to remain vigilent against the entitlement junkies.)

The article's value, I think, is that it give specific, real world examples of how gov't control can be reduced/eliminated with positive results. It has worked in the past and can work here. And, I think the most interesting part is that they just did it and their country did not fall apart and the economy did not crumble, etc.