American Government

Some may say that the American government needs plenty of hands-on involvement in our life while other believe that it should back off a bit and allow the country to operate itself without intervention. A so-called "big" government involves itself a great deal in our everyday lives and that has its pros and cons. On one side, government involvement can protect small businesses by breaking up monopolies, allow workers' unions to exist, ensure food and drugs are safe and safeguarding prices of products such as milk preventing inflation. However, on the negative, government regulation can prevent competition, which decreases prices and increases the products' quality preventing the full potential of the economy to show itself. "Small" government, in which the government allows the country to operate itself, has its pros and cons as well. Using the system know as Laissez-faire economics, meaning "leave it alone", the government allows the market to remain free and competitive depending on private individuals to work together for the greater good of society. On the other hand, this free market system allows monopolies to thrive, which prevents small businesses to succeed and compete with the monopoly. You may opine in your term paper that one system works better and more efficiently than the other, but as it seems, a compromise needs to be met between the two so both competition can thrive and also guidelines for businesses can be in effect.

Some believe that one major crisis that impacts the economy and prevents its progression is our problem of poverty. Although many other factors threaten our economy, poverty places itself at the top of the list. Currently, we have the highest poverty rates in the industrial world, causing high amounts of frail health, imbalanced education and meagerly-paying jobs. Statistics to use in a custom essay: As of right now, Americans between 20 and 75 will, at one point, experience a year of poverty or near poverty and 2/3 of all Americans between 20 and 65 will use a welfare program at one point. Poverty highly affects the economy's prosperity and keeps it from increasing greatly. According to one source, hunger and nutrient deficiencies cost all countries $128 billion a year in productivity losses alone. Also, another study suggests that if the World Foods Summit achieves its goal of reducing hunger by half, humanitarian operations will decrease by $2.5 billion a year. As long as the government attempts to decrease the poverty level, progress will be made both in reducing poverty and boosting the economy.