Scholars Crossing Faculty Publications and Presentations Helms School of Government 2013 Government Regulation: From Independence to Dependency, Part One Steven Alan Samson
[email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/gov_fac_pubs Part of the Policy Design, Analysis, and Evaluation Commons, Policy History, Theory, and Methods Commons, Political Science Commons, and the Public Policy Commons Recommended Citation Samson, Steven. “Government Regulation: From Independence to Dependency, Part One,” The Western Australian Jurist, Volume 4 (2013). 117-161. This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Helms School of Government at Scholars Crossing. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Publications and Presentations by an authorized administrator of Scholars Crossing. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. Vol 4 The Western Australian Jurist 117 GOVERNMENT REGULATION: FROM INDEPENDENCE TO DEPENDENCY, PART ONE * STEVEN ALAN SAMSON Abstract What Robert Bellah calls ‘expressive individualism’ has led to unprecedented social legislation in America and expanded government employment since the 1960s, helping to produce a generous supply of public services, policy entrepreneurs, and clientele groups. The legal scholar Lawrence M Friedman notes that ‘the right to be “oneself,” to choose oneself, is placed in a special and privileged position.’ As a consequence, ‘achievement is defined in subjective, personal terms, rather than in objective, social terms.’ When the claims of expressive individualism are considered in tandem with the increasing reach of the modern social service state, a case may be made for their mutual dependency. Today, the regulatory operations of central governments impinge upon virtually all areas of life, leading to widespread efforts by interest groups to have their vision of the good life implemented through law and regulatory oversight.