Why does government tend to grow so large and why does it tend toward centralization?
143485
Because, often, the people need it. Is there a government called "centralization". No offense, but it is called a unitary gov't.
1089798
For development to flourish, good government is required that supports development.  There is not a great deal of good government in Africa.  Until the governments improve there will be no development.  Granted there may be attempts at development but it will not flourish.  \n\nRegrettably, you are probably wasting your time.
3205
Ron's answer is right on: the government has a monopoly on legalized force. This is a libertarian perspective, and libertarianism is recognized as the best system of government yet devised.
458893
it was the largest federal government expansion in american history. it gave more power to the executive branch of government. The states were not able to successfully get out of the depression, so they gave up some of their state rights in order for the federal government to help them. This gave the federal government much more power in which to start new programs and agencies. (ie: social security) I'd say it was successful at the time, but many of the programs now are not effective or are outdated.
649083
Yes, but it might depend on type of government
854688
Unfortunately, you completely misunderstand the problem.  Why is there corruption in all governments?  Because those in the governments have power!  The less power a government has, the less it will attract those who are power hungry.  Conversely, the more power a government has, the more it will attract those who are power hungry, and it is the most power hungry that are the most corrupt.  That is why the founding fathers, wisely, limited the power of our federal government severely.  Unfortunately, people have been more and more willing to give the government a bigger and bigger budget and more and more power, which attracts the very people we least need in such a position.  People continue, though I can't imagine why, to think that it is only a matter of "cleaning it up" to get a better situation.  The truth is that if the government was limited again to what it was supposed to be in 1790, there would be little motivation for the power hungry to take it over.  And, even if they did, it wouldn't matter anyway because of the severely limited power!  Talk about a win-win situation.   I think we are in for more of the same, unless the people finally say 'enough is enough,' and take away the unconstitutional powers of the government and the enormous budget they have.  Unfortunately people look at government as a benevolent big brother instead of the necessary evil our wise founders did.  Too bad, things will only get worse.
993116
In theory it is, but in practice, it doesn't work that way. The government has become self-serving. One might argue that the government looks at the bigger picture and therefore can not make decisions based on what the people want. Also, at times, the government only knows what the people with the largest influence and the biggest wallets wants.
828118
Centralised control over services... financial efficiencies.. simpler policy making.. easier for the public to understand etc etc etc
401774
Government is a necessary evil, I think a small, limited, Representative government is best.\n\nIf all of the governments in the world fell or just shut down.  Gangs or tribes or families or groups of families would join together to maintain order and defend themselves from others (these are all primitive governments).  This is because man is a social creature and government is the top level of social order.  And then a few hundred years later they would create a welfare state taking more than half of your income.\n\nSo my short answer is new governments would form almost immediately.  If they didn't someone, would come along and take all of your stuff.
661332
The best government is starting to be possible -\n\nAn Earth council to guide and stengthen countries' and unions' governments which are working together. A goal of which will be to encourage into partnership the various countries that are alienating themselves today through mostly paranoia.\n\nNot too long ago, counties/ prefectures / states ( different countries have different names for the areas within its borders ) were at war. This now seems very silly, that people from the same country would be at all out war. It happened.\nThose areas now are governed by a central uniting government which is based in the capital city.\n\nAs countries people are intertwined much more now, the governmeants of countries are working together more and more. Notice standards of living are at an all time high around the planet.\n\nEurope now has a young government to oversee all the countries within Europe. The United States of America has a unifying government. Canada and Australia have strong ties to the U.K. and the queen. So already the is a vast amount of land and a multitude of people all cooperating with and benefiting from this partnership.\n\nAs we move into the future the planets peoples are becoming ever more interconnected and we enevitably rely on each other for basic necessities. Therefore the best government is the one that brings all the Earths governments together for the benefit of all people.
840220
Because they want to live simple. Too many political parties can weaken the current governments and create the political mayhem and disasters.
583421
Big Business.  Big Business can give the big donations. The more money some one has the more voters they can reach, and the better chance for re-election. It is in both camps the Democrats AND Republicans. How many times have you seen legislation that favors big business over the needs of the rest of the population? Medicare Part D is a prime example.  This is not always bad though, sometimes big business can be very beneficial for the rest of the population, most of the time; however, it is not.
213477
After the collapse of the Soviet Union a lot of politicians saw no need for us to have a large military, since we were the only super power left. Unfortunately, many politicians continue to *act* like we have a large military.\n\nThey claim that by trimming the force down some, we can accomplish "more with less." However, there comes a time when less doesn't get you more of anything other than exhausted troops.
667924
The big corporations, special interest groups, and government.
294812
it stems from a time when there were very few educated people, and they needed a way to control the masses. It was essentially the first form of government.
474659
I would think it'd be the Balance of Powers between the three branches of government.\n\n[EDIT]  Okay, I'm changing my answer - based only on a tiny paragraph I just read, but I think this is right:  a strong central government can protect the nation from external threats.  [National Defense]  \n\n(Rather than each state or small groups of states defending itself/themselves against outside nations (enemies), the central government joins its forces and protects the nation (all states) as a whole.)
121212
Federal branch takes care of business, it also seems to rule over those gray areas of government.\n\nState government rules the state.