Government, Government everywhere

Ramdoss bans smoking in films
Modi bans Fanaaa from screening
Punjab government stops Da Vinci code
Rajasthan government bans conversion
VHP calls for paretnal supervision for love marriages (no i am not kidding)
RR Patil bans dance bars
Employment gaurentee scheme


This is all headline news from the past one year or so. What does this tell you? I dont know about you, but it gives me jitters and a reason for worry. Ever the free market buff, i am extremely uncomfortable with government presence in variety of fields, but i get frightened when it reaches private domain.

Look at the decisions above and its clear the govenment wants to dictate my life. It wants to tell me what movies to watch, wants to decide what religion i practice, wants to decide whom i can or cannot marry, and heck even decide what i should or shouldnt do for a living (no i am not saying i want to dance in bars). Its even more disturbing in our country, where morality is more defined by what you wear rather than what you do.

Take a look at what this government is doing to eradicate poverty or solving the problem of aam aadmi so to speak. The 40,000 crore or more utter waste of money, in employment guarentee scheme. The scheme guarentees every poor guy 100 days of employment at a specified wage rate.

Now think of an individual who is entitiled to this. He might have a family of four or five, and through this he may earn say 60-100 Rs a day for 100days. Will it make him any richer or more skillfull/resoureful than he is? Will it pull him out of poverty? Will it give his next generation enough oppurtunities? The answer is a resounding no. Its actually will keep him in poverty forever.

Isnt this the classic case of putting cart before the horse? If the government concentrates and invests that money on building rural infrastrucutre (which is pathetic to say the least), primary schooling and remove unnecassry hicupps in rural credit, you will see not only employment grow but also allows the poor to make a meaningful and tangilble leap out of poverty. But so much of our policies concentrate on distribution of wealth rather than creation of it.

Government in unnecessary public domain is scary enough, now they want to decide what i do in my bed. Immense fear comes visiting