Private industry 'could' do many things that big government does not do very well...but they often do NOT!

You simply can't depend on altruism to go any farther than the bottom line..profit. Whether it is a 'reasonable' profit or an outrageos, greedy profit is often hard to tell, as they don't usually have to open the books and make the details known.........The thing is, the competition that made America great is rapidly dwindling as mergers & buy-outs make us ever more dependant on the whims of suits & ties in board rooms. I used to have 3 or 4 small drug stores within 5 minutes drive...one was bought and summarily closed by Safeway, so that THEIR pharmacy had no competition across the street, and most other small pharmacies in our area are being flat driven out of business and bought by CVS corporation.....who simply makes little attempt to carry the same lines and give the same personalized service. They sell ONLY what they consider good for CVS and are working to be sure the coming generation has few choices beyond what CVS determines they need. Government COULD restrain this process, but it takes so much money to BECOME part of the lesgative body anymore that lawmakers are usually drawn FROM the private industry they need to regulate.

I am not enamored of government for its own sake, I just have more interest in Utilitarianism, rather than Pragmatism, being the guiding principle. In theory, a benevolent despot would provide the most efficient government, but they seem to be in pretty short supply these days....(anyone want to give ME the job? *heh-heh*)