A government big enough to give you everything you want ...

There is a theory (articulate in a piece by Mark Bauerlein) that left-wing academics are engrossed in large scale group think, that when large numbers of the radical left gather together, they come to the assumption that their ideas are mainstream and reasonable. They develop a "false consensus" which leads to increased radicalization and polarization from the mainstream public.

The same phenomenon seems to occur when the Democratic Governors meet. In a event staged this week, the Democratic Governor's Association issued a statement demanding increased spending and involvement of the federal government on a whole host of programs. Serving as spokesman, our own Governor Rendell unveiled their proposal (summarized here by the Patriot News) which includes:

• Raising teacher salaries for all teachers in the nation by 15%, and pay math and science teachers as much as engineers
  
• Provide federal government-run daycare for all pre-school aged children
  
• Pay billions to energy companies to coerce them into conducting research which may or may not lead to productive results
  
• Spend billions on tutoring programs to help students that public schools are leaving behind
  
• Put up new barriers on free trade
  
• Provide taxpayer-funded health coverage for every single child in America
  
• Raise taxes on "the rich"

Once upon a time, a Democrat proclaimed "the era of big government is over" (though it turned out to be a fairy tale). Now, Governor Rendell remarks that "many Americans 'don't know what the Democrats stand for.' " They do now Ed, they do now. A government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take everything you have.