10 states struggling to pay bills

The Great Recession that started in 2007 triggered the biggest collapse of state revenues on record...

The states' revenues have been ready to collapse far before the "Great Recession".  For decades federal, state and local governments have been in the practice of spending way beyond their means, cowtowing to government unions by providing pension and benefits packages far beyond that of the workers in the private sector.  Unfunded liabilities are the real culprit.  Most of the so-called "stimulus" monies went to the states, not to create jobs, but to prop up their cash strapped budgets.  It was Obama and the Democrats paying back their SEIU supporters for helping him get elected.

@Bradley

By moving forward in most cases you assume you get the best product with the best value provided to the individual.  Moving forward could also be seen as providing life, liberty and pursuit of happiness...it does open up a can of worms.

Our only solution to the problems you are describing is that we have to protest as a people and force campaign finance reform.  Also reversing course on recent Supreme Court rulings that give rights of personhood to corporations is necessary.  The founding fathers never had any intention of protecting corporations in the Bill of Rights--they were added with the purpose of protecting individuals from the government.  Now the government has found a way to reverse that and use the Bill of Rights against the people.

        @ oyster

      I dont believe that a rampant free market system is a good thing at all, as evidenced, by well ummm... our free market. However influence is a two way street and blame also falls on the government for accepting those bribes.  Having a bigger government doesnt ensure that the porkbarreling, earmarking nonsense will stop, in fact it makes it harder to control.  No massive motherboard can overide that. If it were a matter of governmental power, they already have it. They have the power provided by the United States constitution to protect the law. However they cant find the motivation to uphold it all the time when they themselves, being a finite number of flawwed human beings, break it on a daily basis.

      I acknowledge to you that regulation is very important. but i am not a republican, however i am a conservative there is a difference and i myself can see the strikingly similar dangers of big government and big business

also,  you made the statement that conservatives believe that competition is the only way humans can move forward.  It what "forward" direction are you thinking of?  Because of course there is always room for societal improvement, but "forward" as if we have something

were missing out on, i dont exactly follow.