Crooked Timber on Political Intervention - Assumptions Galore

Crooked Timber: Comment on Juan non-Volokh (with minor editorial changes): "There are two problems with your argument.

One is an assumption: the unspoken premise of your argument is that something has to be done. You fail to recognize that leaving something to its own devices (in effect “doing nothing� from a political point) is the equivilent of the market approach.

The other problem is evidence. Please cite me some type of evidence to support your argument. Theory is king of the empty thoughts otherwise.

Here are some actual evidentiary examples as noted by Thomas Sowell in his book “Vision of the Anointed�. In all three examples, “market forces� were at play until a government program was initiated.

1) Sex Education - it was presumed that incorporating sex education in public schools would reduce out-of-wedlock births and impede the spread of veneral diseases. Sowell cites statistics indicating that both “crises� were non-existent. Both sets of numbers (births and disease) were on the decline. 30 years after the initiation of the programs, these statistics rose dramatically. The ends certainly did not justify the means.

2) War on poverty - geared particularly to minorities, this program became the focal point of the Kennedy and Johnson administrations to alleviate government dependency. Again, statistics indicate that dependency was on the decline. Where did we end up 20 years after? Program failed.

3) Crime - perceived problem in murder and crime led to government programs of rehabilitation. Despite the fact that the murder rate in 1960 was half of what it was in 1934. Result: Murder rate doubled by 1974
Returning to the main premise of my argument: why must we assume that “something must be done�. For example: NEWSFLASH: median incomes in the city of Stanford, CA are below the poverty "