A/C in Action: The AP Case

[Exsubmariner]

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Wasn't trying to knock down a straw man, I agreed that the government is partially responsible for the reason people are "lazy" in their decision making. I also get the impression that many posters on this forum think that somehow the government is needed to help consumers make the "right" decisions, which I strongly disagree with.



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I think your first sentence is essentially correct. In my thinking, people want government because it allows them to be lazy about certain things. As I have previously stated, I think government exists as a giant cost externalizing vehicle.

It's the fact that you went on to state someone elses assumptions in your second sentence that I think is the strawman.

As to your quote above, personally, I essentially agree with government intervention on an ethical basis. Ethics being defined as action taken to prevent harm from coming to the citizens of that government. The line where that charge comes into conflict with individual rights is debatable. I am not in favor of preventing anyone from willfully doing anything. If it harms them and they know going in of that potential, than what happens is their responsibility.