Do we need a government?

[Professional Russian]

In school today the teacher asked us do we need a government. not being to think correctly because i was tired i figured id bring here to VT.

So do you guys think we need government?

[TheBigUnit]

Yes, thing will run smoothly at first but evrything will crash kinda like a wagon with no wheels

[james wolf]

without a government who would run non-profit organizations like the police-force, army, NHS (for UK), schools. Obviously some of these could be paid for health care especially, but it is much easier for the working class to have them provided for them. If school cost money, people born into poor families would never get a good education and job.

Yes. We need a government.

[PerpetualImperfexion]

without a government who would run non-profit organizations like the police-force, army, NHS (for UK), schools. Obviously some of these could be paid for health care especially, but it is much easier for the working class to have them provided for them. If school cost money, people born into poor families would never get a good education and job.

Yes. We need a government.

So you're saying we need government so that they will give us stuff.

The point of government is to preserve the rights of it's citizens, not to give hand outs. Don't get me wrong, most of the things you mentioned are absolutely necessary, but it came off wrong to me. Without government there would be rapists and murderers running around violating the rights of others. Not to mention the amount of technical advances would likely be a number below 1.

[MisterSix]

no, we don't need a government but the standard of living will probably decrease dramatically

[Sleepy Raisin]

We absolutely need a government. If we dont have government there are no laws. Choas would break loose. Murder, rape, and countless acts will go unjutstified. We'd have countless wrecks due to no longer exsisting traffic laws. Things would be stolen and this country(US) would go down in a very small amount of time.
And if thats not enough, without government we'd go back to being neanderthals, by reasonable opinion. Government is a man made invention, it's something that we have to abide by.
And im barely adressing a portion of the problems we'd have.

[West Coast Sheriff]

Duuuuu!
Of course we do! But a wayyyyyyyyy smaller one

[Danny_boi 16]

Yes, what would we do without it lol.

[Amnesiac]

I believe some sort of centralized power is necessary to protect the rights of citizens and offer a proper judicial system to settle disputes and punish those who violate the rights of others. Really, it all depends on what you consider to be a "government". Do I believe the current system of welfare, taxation and regulation is strictly necessary? Not entirely, although these things are appropriate when properly written and reasonably enforced. It could be possible to create a successful society without the concept of a government as we know it – without a bureaucracy that legislates from the top down. However, the power of human greed and the inability of the average person to think objectively (or without emotion) convinces me that a government built on the concept of defending individual liberties is preferable to a decentralized society.

I'm not a fan of labeling government as "always the problem" because I don't believe in making absolute, sweeping declarations like that. Not one thing in this world is "always the problem". Moderation is the key to a successful, stable society.

[dontfiguremeout]

Heck ya we need a government! The government is the people that keep all the countries up and going! Without them we would have no order, and everyone would be so crazy!

[james wolf]

So you're saying we need government so that they will give us stuff.

The point of government is to preserve the rights of it's citizens, not to give hand outs. Don't get me wrong, most of the things you mentioned are absolutely necessary, but it came off wrong to me. Without government there would be rapists and murderers running around violating the rights of others. Not to mention the amount of technical advances would likely be a number below 1.

I mean like they're there to act in the best interests of the people whereas private companies and buisinesses act in their best interest..

[Lyra Heartstrings]

Without a government, crime rates would skyrocket. We might have small militia men who act as police, but come on, you think they'll do anything? It'll turn into a hellhole. Government is completely necessary.

[The Flash]

Yes and No.

why yes: Because we need them for Rule, Law, and Order.

Why no: Government can take away our RIGHTS, for e.g Our Gun rights. (Canada and the UK). The gov't charges us wayy too much for tax.

[Thunduhbuhlt]

We do need a government, we just need less government. Specifically, less corrupt government.

[TheMatrix]

Government(n):
The act or process of governing, especially the control and administration of public policy in a political unit. (Source) (http://www.thefreedictionary.com/_/search.aspx?pid=aff18&word=government)

There are many ways to look at this. Let's take 2 opposite viewpoints, which we'll then choose one of to continue discussing.

Basically, there are 2 ways for a society to function: anarchy or governed.
Anarchy is how the first humans and most animals live -- no rules, no laws, no right-or-wrong, just every man for himself. Let nature run its course.
Government is a very broad term. While we could spend all day talking about it, let's look at several philosophers, all from the Enlightenment, when many of the ideas found in western societies started.
On one side you have John Locke. He believed that humans should rule themselves, with equality and principles commonly known as "democracy". He combined many of the ideas from Voltaire, Caesare Beccaria, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and others into his ideals. The USA has a modified version of one of his most famous "natural rights of man": the right to life, liberty, and property. Sound familiar? It's in the Constitution. In today's world, we regard this as a very important idea.
On the opposite end, you have Thomas Hobbes. His belief was that humans were naturally evil, and could not be trusted to rule themselves. He thought that an absolute monarchy with a philosopher-king was the best system. Of course, you may think "that's ridiculous", but if you think about it, that works great in theory. Of course, one of the qualities of said ruler must be that they are not power-hungry. Alas, keep any person in family in power for too long, and they will become tyrannical, just look at France in 1780 and earlier.
And, of course, you can go with feudalism. It works great for small societies, but it makes the spread of information hard, because you only know what is told to you on your manor. And eventually the upper classes will take advantage of the lower classes, and history repeats itself, not only in 1780 France, but in most medieval European countries at the time.

Essentially, the type of government will be decided by the subjects, because unless you can brainwash your people like in North Korea, people will revolt and overthrow an old system if they feel it doesn't work. That's just nature: nothing lasts forever. People thought the Roman Empire would last forever, but after about 500 years, the people decided it was time to move on. So they did.

tl;dr? What, you asked about government :P

[Azunite]

Think about having a thousand cookies in the middle, all defenceless and waiting to be taken and eaten.

It will be chaotic if everyone rushes in and tries to get one at the same time. That's where the government comes in. Somebody needs to form a line and distribute the cookies.

[The Flash]

Gun-right? LOL, you're joking right? I don't want my testicles blown off by some Chav in London or my home for that matter.

Gun rights affect law abiding citizens, a chav wouldnt even be able to get a gun license.
A chav could get their hands on an illegal gun in London. During the London Riots, the rioters had guns, while the police didnt. :/

[Φρανκομβριτ]

A goverment works well in theory.

Communism works well in theory.

If the greed of today didn't corrupt every fucking thing we have today, and governments were less like corporations themselves, I'd say yes, but honnestly, we're probably better off without any government whatsoever than with the joke of a governing body we have now.

[TheMatrix]

If the greed of today didn't corrupt every fucking thing we have today, and governments were less like corporations themselves, I'd say yes, but honnestly, we're probably better off without any government whatsoever than with the joke of a governing body we have now.

"Since the proletariat must first of all acquire political supremacy, must rise to be the leading class of the nation, must constitute itself the nation, it is so far, itself national, though not in the bourgeois sense of the word. "
-- Karl Marx, "The Communist Manifesto"

Working men of all countries, unite!