Exclusively? Absolutely not. In fact government can completely ignore them if it so chooses. And has. Of course there will be reactions.
The relationship is symbiotic. Balance must be struck. Government cannot survive without the private sector.
When I moved from the military to the private sector, my first job was with a corporation, where I was blessed with incredible mentors. Part of my responsibility included the management of several million dollar plus contracts.
I was taught from a child to ride for the brand. I understood my responsibility was to drive the costs of my contracts as low as possible to help my company.
One of my mentors fortunately took the time to explain to me how my drive was creating a toxic environment for my contractors. He said something to me I remember clear as a bell to this day: “You can break your contractors and we can’t be successful without them.” That was all he said.
The same holds true with regulatory socialism. The government can break the private sector, it cannot survive without it.
The media and pols focus on the cases of abuse, malfeasance, etc. And there are many. They need to be addressed as they arise. In many cases harshly.
The other side of that coin is in our zeal to right wrongs, we punish the innocent by creating a toxic environment in which none of them can operate.
Most Americans work for a corporation. The majority for large corporations. Most Americans have good lives because they do.
It doesn’t matter how qualified one is for a job if no one is hiring. No one can live where they choose to while having a good life if the jobs have moved somewhere else.
If it happens naturally, that’s one thing. If it happens because of government causing it, it is a different thing.
Toxicity is real. I was privileged on several occassions to be part of analysis teams deciding to expand into other areas, including countries, or to contract out of them. Always there were numerous factors. But always the major ones were economic and regulatory. The ability to manage tax liabilities was its own sub-team. Always. Lawyers and accountants.
In some cases we recommended expansion. In others the environment was so toxic we didn’t, or closed up. My role was operations and all its aspects, but I listened, argued and learned. Always. I led some of those teams.
There are some jobs and environments are just not worth it. A smart management team walks away from them to focus efforts where there was a greater probability for success.
Government takes. Some taking is necessary. Too much is toxic. The key is the balance.
