Quote:
Originally Posted by Jellby
Would you leave the army under the control of private corporations and individuals? Well, that's most Europeans' view with healthcare and education (and other subjects) 
(I fear someone will tell me the army already is under the control of private corporations) |
W.R.T. Army and control, I observe that the Founding Fathers of the US wanted to have it
both ways. On the one hand, they certainly thought that providing for the common defense was a legitimate function of government. On the other hand, they felt that a "well regulated militia"* was key to keeping the government in its limited place. The historical record seems clear that the US's FFs were strong believers in a citizen's right -- or even
duty -- to shoot back at the government if/when it became intolerable. After all, they'd only recently finished doing exactly that!
And remember that at the time they were writing the guy who got to be Colonel of Militia was the one who could afford to buy the cannon and other "heavy weapons." Or equip a warship, to use a naval example -- an example they certainly considered (look at the "letters of marque and reprisal" clauses in the Constitution).
Xenophon
*Note that common 18th c. usage of the word "regulated" was quite different from current usage.