Good point about contractors and civilian labor. That’s a whole topic on its own. Some argue in favor of the flexibility and financial aspects of having private industry provide some services, and there is truth to that. It’s much of the basis as the idea of “running the government like a business.”

I personally feel many of the goals of the government have a hard time coexisting with something designed to function like a business. Some things need to be done that will never be profitable, and I think it is an important distinction that people are working directly for the citizenry, not for who holds their contract.

Nobody likes paying bills, aka taxes, even if they’re receiving benefit from it, but the goal should often be to just ensure we are getting our money’s worth of services more than if we should eliminate them or given control over to private parties.