>> Isn't it "folk wisdom" that many gov't programs start with promises >> they'll stay small (income tax, social security, medicaid) but once >> they exist, they become popular?
I'm not sure this is right. If you look at what the public say they would like in a government health care program it is huge and very expensive (in contrast I suspect if you asked how much they would like to spend on it the amount would be too small to pay for what they would like to see in the package). As I understand it, the cost of the medicare program turned out to be much greater than expected, but not because congress kept changing the legislation to add more goodies. Rather treatment became increasingly more expensive. I suspect that popular opinion would have preferred to see an even bigger medicare program at the start. Of the examples you mention I suspect that only the income tax was sold on the basis of its limited size. - - Bill Dickens William T. Dickens The Brookings Institution 1775 Massachusetts Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20036 Phone: (202) 797-6113 FAX: (202) 797-6181 E-MAIL: [EMAIL PROTECTED] AOL IM: wtdickens
