Oddbean

People like to advocate for small government (whatever this means - how small?), but there’s no historical precedent that I could find where it actually works. You have to have absolute rulers for it to work for some time , but ultimately that power corrupts them.

The USA became the must powerful nation on Earth with extremely limited government. No federal taxes, no federal agencies. Individual liberty and individual free agency, etc. Very little government. All this before the introduction of the 16th Amendment in 1913 (forced taxation). That's when America was fundamentally changed into a socialistic big government crap show. Now it is nothing more than crony socialism ... heading into a communofacistic society. People do much better without forced-collectivist governments. (aka "big government")

Why should a centralized government be smaller? It probably mostly depends on the services a state provides. When the state provides services as public transport for all villages, there needs to be a fund for this, when the national streets are maintained in contracted from the government, there needs to be a fund for it. For Schools, for Military, for Police, for universities and science, for independent press support, for local farming, open provided statistics for all within and out of government. These are all Services we invest in our society in Switzerland. And it is payed by taxes. Which does not mean it is all government. It is a system to pay services collateral. It is a social investment, I pay happily. Since all profit from its fruits. And when the government wants to expand the budget in some direction everyone gets to vote about it. Like this we have a very close connection from voters to politicians. Every year we vote for about 12 legislative changes, where every swiss citicen can participate. Plus the local votings.

I mean also in switzerland there is corruption. But I think corruption is something a society has to minimize with good rules. So that the corruptable regret it sooner or later. When most corruptables regret it hardly I think the rules are quiet well. I do not beleave, that there is a way to prevent corruption.