Here’s a good point:
The Washington Post refers to Ralph Nader’s Public Citizen as “a public-interest group†in an article on costly federal regulations that the group is defending. So I wondered: Does the Post think federal regulation is always in the public interest? Or that groups that defend regulation are really acting “in the public interest� What about groups that work to reduce the burden of government on consumers or taxpayers? Are they “public interest groups� Certainly, as a member of the public, I don’t really see bigger, costlier government and more expensive products as being in my interest.
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But how about the National Taxpayers Union, which works to eliminate wasteful spending and reduce the burden of government? Was it a public interest group? Not in the Post. How about the Competitive Enterprise Institute, which works for competition and more choice for consumers? Not a public interest group.
The Post seems to have a very consistent but arguably wrong-headed view about just what is in the public’s interest.
He clearly fails to grasp that it’s in the public interest to be liberal. Anything else is not a public interest, it’s a special interest.
Teacher’s unions crippling our public schools? Public interest.
People trying to introduce competition into the school system? Special interest.
Got it?