i would point out, though, that your analogy actually makes my point for me–whether you take public or private transportation for your travel you expect that you will be able to get to and from your points of travel safely and successfully which requires inspection and accountability. additionally, if governments started taking money from highway and mass transit budgets so that anyone buying a car could have a voucher for $3-5000 to spend on any car they wanted the probability that the public would approve of that is probably pretty low. if the government were also to offer inspection waivers for cars at least partially paid for with vouchers the level of approval would be even lower.
i don’t trust unaccountable institutions and i don’t think most of the public does either if they stop to think about it.
Honestly, my analogy only goes so far, so I probably shouldn’t press it. However, I do think it covers my point.
I think all vehicles need some minimum safety standards. As a rider of public transport, I vote for a government that imposes much higher safety standards on the buses and subways I ride than the minimum. If I’m of a mind, I can purchase a high-safety car, but I’m not obliged to.
As for using public funds for private schools, that’s far enough beyond my personal belief, I can’t even come up with a nominal defense.
(Which I don’t consider a good sign. In a democracy, one only effects change by persuading those who don’t already agree with you. I consider the ability to argue a position I don’t personally hold to be the only way to understand those who do hold it. And that understanding is a requirement to be able to persuade. Luckily, school choice isn’t currently on the agenda in Ontario.)
