Commencement

Though I am normally loathe to acknowledge the University of Michigan, seeing as how I am a fan of its "little brother" Michigan State and a graduate of it's infant step-cousin, Grand Valley State, that university did indeed host President Obama at its commencement ceremonies over the weekend.

You can find a copy of Obama's remarks here. In it is a strong defense of the role of government in our lives. And as Paul Krugman reminds us in his Op-Ed piece in yesterday's NYT, Sex & Drugs & The Spill:

If there’s any silver lining to the disaster in the gulf, it is that it may serve as a wake-up call, a reminder that we need politicians who believe in good government, because there are some jobs only the government can do.

From Obama's speech:

When our government is spoken of as some menacing, threatening foreign entity, it ignores the fact that in our democracy, government is us. We, the people -- (applause.) We, the people, hold in our hands the power to choose our leaders and change our laws, and shape our own destiny.

Government is the police officers who are protecting our communities, and the servicemen and women who are defending us abroad. (Applause.) Government is the roads you drove in on and the speed limits that kept you safe. Government is what ensures that mines adhere to safety standards and that oil spills are cleaned up by the companies that caused them. (Applause.) Government is this extraordinary public university -– a place that’s doing lifesaving research, and catalyzing economic growth, and graduating students who will change the world around them in ways big and small. (Applause.)

The truth is, the debate we’ve had for decades now between more government and less government, it doesn’t really fit the times in which we live. We know that too much government can stifle competition and deprive us of choice and burden us with debt. But we’ve also clearly seen the dangers of too little government -– like when a lack of accountability on Wall Street nearly leads to the collapse of our entire economy. (Applause.)

OK. Enough about U of M.