Reading about the reactions from around Illinois to the cuts in state programs proposed by Gov. Scrooge, I was reminded of this passage from Benjamin Franklin’s Autobiography.
Those who govern, having much business on their hands, do not generally like to take the trouble of considering and carrying into execution new projects. The best public measures are therefore seldom adopted from previous wisdom, but forc’d by the occasion.
The occasion in Illinois is that the status quo cannot be sustained. The cost of government must be reduced. Programs ought not merely to be cut but rethought — some eliminated altogether, others funded by non-governmental means, most administered more effectively, with attention paid to outcomes as well as inputs.
None of this figures in the governor’s approach. State of Illinois government, which might have emerged from its present crisis like the middle-aged heart attack victim, not only leaner but fitter, is likely to end up merely less well-nourished.
This article appears in Mar 19-25, 2015.
