Economists usually say this:
- Don’t bail out the banks, that’s bad. Let them survive in a free market as they demand.
- Please don’t bail out big companies.
- Please make it easier to start a business.
- Everyone should have the right to own their work.
- Please don’t collectivize everything, that’s happened before, it didn’t work.
- Private industry is good.
But we also usually say:
- We hate Comcast, they over charge and provide lackluster service. ISPs should be run by the public sector.
- Nationalize the railways!
- Public parks are wonderful!
- Health care must be available to all!
These follow a few basic values which most of us hold dear, and those are that quality of life is the ultimate goal of society. Make a more equitable and wealthier society without compromising the environment. Holding these three goals in tangent creates these basic ideas as generally accepted ideas. Studying over two centuries has made these 10 points understandable. The 4 places where I list things we think the government should have a large role are natural monopolies, or have monopolistic tendencies (such as medicine), and hence in order to increase quantity provided only a government can provide those 4 services.
More importantly, looking at the economy through a monoscopic lens of “government good, private industry bad” or “government bad, private industry good” misses the point entirely. the ultimate goal, to increase the quality of life for everybody doesn’t fit neatly into such one dimensional boxes. But a more detailed understanding of political theory and morality which is truly multidimensional (rich, equitable, sustainable) suggests policies which if fully implemented would truly make the world a better place.