Jim Shaw rapidcityjournal.com | Posted: Tuesday, October 19, 2010 6:00 am
There's an old joke about the guy who went to college on the GI Bill, bought his home with a VA loan, drove to work on interstate highways, sent his children to public schools, vacationed in national parks, and had peace of mind knowing his parents had Social Security and Medicare to see them through their golden years. He's the same fellow who insists he wants to "get the government off my back".
With the midterm Congressional elections just two weeks away, Republicans and Democrats are engaged in a heated debate about the appropriate size and scope of government.
But regardless of this election's outcome, history shows government policies and programs have always played a big role in our lives.
If it wasn't for government action, we would speak French instead of English. All or part of 14 states, including South Dakota, were originally claimed by France until 880,000 square miles of land was added to the U.S. by President Thomas Jefferson in the Louisiana Purchase.
Development of the Black Hills area was allowed by Congress in the 1870s after it voided treaties with Indian tribes. Westward expansion of the railroads was encouraged by federal policies that gave them huge tracts of government-owned land along their proposed routes. Even individual homesteaders were given free land by the government in exchange for living and working on it.
Today? South Dakota is a winner when it comes to federal dollars received versus taxes paid: our state gets $1.59 in federal money for every $1 we pay in federal taxes. South Dakota farmers and ranchers are subsidized by government payments, and prices for many commodities are bolstered by government action.
Our local economy is dominated by the military - i.e. Ellsworth Air Force Base and the National Guard - spending federal dollars to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars a year.
There are five national parks and monuments, Mt. Rushmore included, all funded by the government, which are the basis for tourism in our region.
Hundreds of thousands of acres of land in South Dakota are owned by the federal and state governments (Black Hills National Forest, National Grasslands, Custer State Park, etc.); flood control, irrigation and water supplies are run by the feds (part of Rapid City's water supply comes from Pactola and Deerfield lakes, built and controlled by the federal government), and so are the nine Indian Reservations statewide.
Our six state universities are subsidized by the government to provide lower tuition, and government guaranteed student loans help many people pay for college.
Last week this column pointed out that South Dakota's average income is much lower than some nearby states (North Dakota, Minnesota, Colorado), while the number of people in South Dakota living on less than $25,000 a year is much higher.
If the role of government, as Abraham Lincoln said, is to do for people what they cannot do individually, then the current crop of candidates should be discussing what they would do to set the foundation to help all of us attain a higher quality of life.
No, that doesn't mean more welfare. What it does mean is shaping and directing programs that will benefit those aims (for example, the Underground Lab at Homestake will be totally government funded).
Government impact on our lives can be viewed as positive or negative, but one thing is not in dispute: It is a fact.
There's an old joke about the guy who went to college on the GI Bill, bought his home with a VA loan, drove to work on interstate highways, sent his children to public schools, vacationed in national parks, and had peace of mind knowing his parents had Social Security and Medicare to see them through their golden years. He's the same fellow who insists he wants to "get the government off my back".
With the midterm Congressional elections just two weeks away, Republicans and Democrats are engaged in a heated debate about the appropriate size and scope of government.
But regardless of this election's outcome, history shows government policies and programs have always played a big role in our lives.
If it wasn't for government action, we would speak French instead of English. All or part of 14 states, including South Dakota, were originally claimed by France until 880,000 square miles of land was added to the U.S. by President Thomas Jefferson in the Louisiana Purchase.
Development of the Black Hills area was allowed by Congress in the 1870s after it voided treaties with Indian tribes. Westward expansion of the railroads was encouraged by federal policies that gave them huge tracts of government-owned land along their proposed routes. Even individual homesteaders were given free land by the government in exchange for living and working on it.
Today? South Dakota is a winner when it comes to federal dollars received versus taxes paid: our state gets $1.59 in federal money for every $1 we pay in federal taxes. South Dakota farmers and ranchers are subsidized by government payments, and prices for many commodities are bolstered by government action.
Our local economy is dominated by the military - i.e. Ellsworth Air Force Base and the National Guard - spending federal dollars to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars a year.
There are five national parks and monuments, Mt. Rushmore included, all funded by the government, which are the basis for tourism in our region.
Hundreds of thousands of acres of land in South Dakota are owned by the federal and state governments (Black Hills National Forest, National Grasslands, Custer State Park, etc.); flood control, irrigation and water supplies are run by the feds (part of Rapid City's water supply comes from Pactola and Deerfield lakes, built and controlled by the federal government), and so are the nine Indian Reservations statewide.
Our six state universities are subsidized by the government to provide lower tuition, and government guaranteed student loans help many people pay for college.
Last week this column pointed out that South Dakota's average income is much lower than some nearby states (North Dakota, Minnesota, Colorado), while the number of people in South Dakota living on less than $25,000 a year is much higher.
If the role of government, as Abraham Lincoln said, is to do for people what they cannot do individually, then the current crop of candidates should be discussing what they would do to set the foundation to help all of us attain a higher quality of life.
No, that doesn't mean more welfare. What it does mean is shaping and directing programs that will benefit those aims (for example, the Underground Lab at Homestake will be totally government funded).
Government impact on our lives can be viewed as positive or negative, but one thing is not in dispute: It is a fact.
