Privatization

What about a push for more privatization? Yes; no?

Here is a libertarian’s view (John Stossel) on privatization. The libertarian argument: you can drive down costs when you have competition and get the bulk of bureaucracy and wasteful spending out. Competition and incentive to improve can be driving factors to reduce costs. If the private company doesn’t produce results, they’re fired, as opposed to government bureacracy that won’t fire itself. The libertarian view is to believe in the capabilities of people to gather and produce on their own without the need of government, which is dangerously drowning in debt.

Some examples Stossel includes are private care of public parks, Democratic Mayor Rahm Emanuel vying private and public sector against each other to compete for recycling, privatization of public hospitals, privatizing water supply to save tax payers money and provide cleaner water in Jersey.

Toward the end of the video an example is given from a Georgia city, comparing their private workers who have a better work ethic and results than the nearby town with more city employees and the same population. She asks, what difference does it make if the company is making a profit and you are paying less for your service? What does the class think?