What To Do About Govt and What Should Govt Do?

Thanks for reading my post. I wrote this because of two news articles published over the past two years which suggested that our fifty states are pressured by federal govt level polluters (the military) to avoid clean up costs on local military bases. On one hand, the federal govt in its EPA incarnation looks like a "good cop" policing the environment, but what about the Dept of Defense - also the federal govt? Is DOD the "bad cop," and then what about state agencies? This reminds me of the intelligence community where what appears to be true, may not be...I think I may be getting a tad too paranoid for my own good, but read on and see what you think.

If you care about contaminated military bases as I do and want to see them cleaned up; you, of course, wonder who should pay for clean up.
You begin to reason...who damaged the land and water? Who is responsible? Then, you ask: Is this offending group still around? Will they do the "right" thing-pay to fix their mess? If not, what will society have to do to this group to extract payment?
These are not easy questions to answers.
So, you turn to the law..The law says responsible parties must pay. But, they don't-not fully. Not even "nearly fully."
So, you examine the questions: Who or what is the law? The US government, EPA, the courts, even the Supreme Court-maybe.
Okay - who actually damaged the military base? The Navy, the Dept of Defense...Why, THE GOVERNMENT!
So, can we logically conclude the government should make ITSELF pay-and then proceed to realize that "the government" is pretty much the same thing as the citizen, the voter, the taxpayer. US! (Oh, and by the way, we're also the victims as we live around these bases, breathe the air, and look for a substitute for the groundwater the Navy ruined!)
Do you think this system is fair, or even realistic as a solution to massive environmental problems in our country and, yes, around the world? The US military has been everywhere and its global, environmental boot print will be vocally and visually identified through the media, if it hasn't been already.
WE MUST RETHINK THIS SYSTEM OF HAVING THE GOVERNMENT POLICE ITSELF AND HOLD ON TO ITS OWN CHECKBOOK, so to speak. A responsive-to-the needs-of-people Congress must prevail as representatives of an active citizenry demanding the basics of life-clean air, water, soil.
Or does the clean up confrontation need to rise through the courts? The Supreme Court should understand the US government if anyone does, but their verdict could be surprising in this modern age of chemical warfare that we need to fight terrorism. It's a new age and our long-held beliefs about liberty and justice are up for grabs, I fear.
Recently, Americans have demanded change in Washington. Change - or change I can believe in - comes not just from putting out fires like failing banks, however serious; but from philosophy that grows out of American foundational ideas like justice, inalienable rights, opportunity, and personal responsibility.
For example, as much as I want to see everyone have health care, I don't see the legal imperative to provide it as a matter of justice. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't see the idea of making restitution like I do in these military base clean up issues. The continued contamination of these bases says to me that the government is protecting itself and arrogantly deciding for citizens what it-the government-can get away with. This is a hide from responsibility game.
Health care is different. To me, finding a way to care for the sick is a matter of compassion, grace, responsibility of the healthy to help fellow men, and even business opportunity on some levels; but I don't think it can be entirely forced in terms of law. Some aspects like the pre-existing condition disqualification should be eliminated with legislation and perhaps opportunity for insurance, affordable screenings, and research facilities should be provided through legislation, but individual responsibility for health throughout one's lifetime must be part of the deal. You can't force someone to stay safe and take care of his or her health, and you really can't do it for him.
Apparently, my desired military base clean ups can't be forced either...
In the end, unless we speak up, government will try to decide everything for us , leaving us more the victim than we are already - and that is not a change that will do us good.
The core strength of America is that her free people can figure out the right thing to do and can courageously do it or see that it gets done. We have trusted each other and worked together for over 200 years. Let's not stop now-whether our mission be the environment, health care, the economy.
Come let us reason together...what do people need to live? What can they do for themselves? And what are the things only government can and should do-like using our money for defense and clean up thereafter and giving us opportunity to keep ourselves healthy.