Would a federal government be beneficial to the Philippines?
The difficult part in our supposed transition from a unitary presidential republic to a federal one is the fact that a lot of our economic growth is centred around the National Capital Region (NCR), or as critics of the current system would say, “Imperial Manila.”And this is something that shows no sign of stopping. As the world’s population goes from rural to urban, cities are becoming engines of economic growth. Manila would most likely benefit from this, not just because of the present institutions working in its favor, but also because of the planned projects that would heighten its importance in the country.By passing the TRAIN law, our government has made steps to ensure that billions of dollars of funding are available for infrastructure projects. Many of these projects will be implemented in Manila, including the on-going expansion of the LRT lines to Cavite, the planned partnership with Japan to build the first-ever subway, and the SLEX-NLEX connector. As much as Duterte speaks about federalism and creating new government centers in Clark Green City, his budget still earmarks billions to fund projects in Manila. This shows the priorities of the government.If we are to ensure a successful experiment in federalism, we have to build up institutions in other areas so that rather than having them depend on the federal funds to finance their budgetary requirements (utilities, transportation, urban planning, education, healthcare, police, etc), they can turn to themselves. Better yet, we have to build up local economies so that they can sustain themselves rather than depend on the federal government once federalism is applied.If we look at the United States as an example of successful federalism, it is because the economies of their states can be compared to countries:This means that they can pretty much set local policies because they have the funds to do so.A nightmare scenario is having a federal government implemented but having provinces depend on Manila anyway, which would undermine their supposed independence.Building up local institutions and economies, and creating greater efficiency in our bureaucracy would be a good step. Once we have succeeded in this huge undertaking, can we answer whether federalism is good for our country’s future.
What are the pros/cons of more government vs. less government?
More Government — Pros:Greater regulation of potentially dangerous industries/market forces.Greater oversight over education systems to ensure quality education.Ability to enact more widespread social programsMore difficulty to carry out widespread corruptionGreater ability to enforce rightsLess Government — Pros:Greater flexibility in theoryLower operating costsFewer personnel to corrupt/become corruptedGreater efficiency in theoryMore Government — Cons:Can be stifling, particularly to those who cherish/fetishize freedom.Higher operating costsLess flexible — sometimes ridiculously soComplex, often with overlapping mechanisms that can slow down speed of operations due to redundancies.Corruption is more easily hidLess Government — Cons:Incapable of carrying out widespread social/economic/political programs, even when needed.Lack of personnel can hinder its operational efficiency, and adding more will require on the job training, which is ridiculously inefficient (especially if they’re temporary).Likely would result in lack of oversight and regulation in basic services, like health, education, and so on, resulting in a highly unequal panorama that varies administrative region by administrative region.Decentralisation of power will likely lead to regionalism, and possibly secessionism (the bane of human civilisation).Less able to protect essential rights.Lack of economic oversight capabilities would likely result in a very, very tumultuous market, or a very monopolistic/oligopolistic one.I’m sure I’ve missed a few things, but the other answers will probably have more. Thank you to Roland Diaz for the A2A.
Why do most Americans look to the federal government to solve their problems rather than state and local?
Shouldn't problems be solved at a local level where you have more control? If federal funding is required to solve whatever problem, shouldn't it come from the feds with no strings attached?
What are the pros and cons of governmental regulation of health care products and services for providers?
Pros: More safety and consistency for patients. Cons: Open for abuse by medical device and pharma company lobbyists w/ corrupt lawmakers.
Are fascists liberal or conservative?
This is something they never talked about in school. What confuses me is that when I look at fascists I think of someone who is conservative. But Hitler himself was a member of the German socialist party before he went in to power. There are also many neo-Nazis living in America today that claim to be socialist. On Wikipedia it saids that fascists oppose social democracy. I am so confuse.
Why can't liberals and conservatives get along?
I realize it now...liberals and conservatives aren't all that different. We both want change. We both dream of a better America! If we'd stop fighting, we might realize that. :)
What are the pros and cons of splitting up California into several smaller states? What are the typical political affiliations of supporters of this bill?
The number of Congressmen is based on population, so that would more or less not change at all. But each state gets two senators, so California would gain four Senate seats. Since most of those would be Democrats it would be a long-term shift in the Senate towards the left.But on the down side, we would have the overhead of two more state governments. That means building and maintaining two more state capitals, state constitutions, elected bodies, and legal systems. It’s a BIG overhead expense for no real benefits.It would be a blow to our education system. We currently have these great UC and Cal State university systems, which would be broken up. It would be terrible for our state highway system too.It will never happen because Californians see themselves as one great state. There is no strong sentiment towards splitting among the vast majority of us. Although Northern and Southern California are culturally very different, we’re proud to be one state.