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Pay to Play Government

This story made news recently: No Pay, No Spray Firefighting Case.

Basically, a guy didn't pay the $75 fee for rural fire coverage, and as such, firefighters did not put out his trailer or house on fire. It is what it is, and the policy has apparently been in place for a long, long time.

But it raises the idea of "pay to play government." What government services are essential? What government services should you be able to "opt out" of?

Frankly, I can't think of many, but it'd be interesting to see how things break down. How much of our taxes go to the USPS? To supporting local libraries? Fire fighting? Road work?

I wonder. I don't know that I'd opt out of much, but again, maybe there are a lot of things people could opt out of without upsetting the balance too much. Would I pay to belong to the library if that was a possibility? I think I might.

One Response to "Pay to Play Government"

  1. From the USPS website: "A self-supporting government enterprise, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation — 150 million residences, businesses and Post Office boxes. The Postal Service receives no tax dollars. With 36,000 retail locations and the most frequently visited website in the federal government, the Postal Service relies on the sale of postage, products and services to pay for operating expenses."