Principled limits on government
Like almost all, if not all, law students, my first year included reading many opinions penned by Seventh Circuit Judge Richard Posner. I get a kick out of Posner and when I’m bored, I check out the blog that he writes with University of Chicago Professor Gary Becker: The Becker-Posner Blog. While reading this post on health care reform and obesity, I came across this passage:
I do not think that government should regulate behavior on the premise that it knows better what makes people happy than people themselves do; but controlling external costs is or should be an uncontroversial governmental function.
I’m not 100% convinced that I would put this bumper sticker on my car, but I like the sound of it. I certainly agree that the government should not be in the business of determining what makes people happy. And assuming that “controlling” does necessarily mean “eliminating,” I think I can agree with the second clause.