Worse, when politics and public money are involved there is a fixation with “accountability” that often leads to micromanagement simply because it feels like it’s the responsible thing to do, the one you can defend best with the voters. “Look, we gave them money and didn’t much check what they were doing with it because we trust them and think that this is the best way to get bang for our buck in terms of productivity” can be sound thinking, but it’s still terrible messaging.
One fundamental problem with public finances is that many voters have what I can only term as “poor mindset”. Pinch pennies, account for every expense, don’t risk waste, bets don’t pay off. Which is fine and often wise when you do in fact have barely enough income to live. But as a voter, you are a tiny fractional manager for an entity that has literally more money than you are capable of imagining. And you can’t manage it like you would your home. But very often that is exactly what politicians and media encourage you to do, and how they present the problem.
Worse, when politics and public money are involved there is a fixation with “accountability” that often leads to micromanagement simply because it feels like it’s the responsible thing to do, the one you can defend best with the voters. “Look, we gave them money and didn’t much check what they were doing with it because we trust them and think that this is the best way to get bang for our buck in terms of productivity” can be sound thinking, but it’s still terrible messaging.
One fundamental problem with public finances is that many voters have what I can only term as “poor mindset”. Pinch pennies, account for every expense, don’t risk waste, bets don’t pay off. Which is fine and often wise when you do in fact have barely enough income to live. But as a voter, you are a tiny fractional manager for an entity that has literally more money than you are capable of imagining. And you can’t manage it like you would your home. But very often that is exactly what politicians and media encourage you to do, and how they present the problem.