In Praise of Government Service (And We Hope That Includes Government Lawyers, Too)
By Jamie Bence
In an editorial published today on AOL Government, Admiral Thad Allen, the former Commandant of the US Coast Guard, takes up the issue that PSLawNet has covered previously. In his piece, General Allen reminds us why public servants should not be demonized in the debate over budget cuts and slowing federal hiring:
In the current political climate and discourse over the national debt, we have done a poor job of distinguishing between the need for fiscal responsibility and the value of public service, which is enduring.
While politicians necessarily haggle over policy, budgets and the size of government, it is worth remembering that it does not serve any of us as Americans when government employees are denigrated or vilified. We all want the best government possible, and our aim should be to encourage, not discourage, bright, capable people from serving their fellow citizens.
The article points out that, while a government job may be “just a paycheck” for some, and like any institution, the government makes mistakes, civil servants are by and large individuals who make personal sacrifices for a greater cause. Moreover, they provide essential services that make resolve problems, big and small, in everyday life:
Imagine what it would be like taking your children to school and finding no one there to teach them, calling 9-1-1 and having no one respond to your emergency, having no sanitation workers to pick up your trash, no one building or maintaining our roads, no one guarding our borders, no one manning or embassies abroad, or no one providing health care to our wounded warriors or sending out Social Security checks.
The truth is that each and every day, civil servants are finding solutions to serious problems, assisting Americans in need, keeping us safe and advancing our national interests.
To read Admiral Allen’s complete piece, click here.
