Good government is good.

One thing that annoys me is libertarian bullshit that government sucks and that public affairs should be handled purely through private action, and I can't think of a better refutation than the annual flyer I get from my town's water department outlining how well they have complied with the Clean Water Act (no violations at all this year) and what they plan to do about any problems that have cropped up. They also tell where the town's water comes from and how they treat it. I love it because

1) clean, safe, inexpensive water flowing into my home on demand is a huge boost to my standard of living, and it wouldn't be possible if I had to pay for a private company to provide all the infrastructure to do it;

2) it's a routine function of my society, paid for by my taxes and overseen by my elected representatives–it requires minimal attention and action on my part, but is still something I can directly affect and there's a convenient schedule built into it all so that it's easier to get my neighbors on the same page;

3) the benefits to me of everyone in town having the same access to clean, safe water are hard to measure but very real and, again, not something that could achieved through for-profit industry.

Collective public action creates public wealth and prosperity. Republicans should go sit in the corner and feel ashamed.