Good governance is necessary for a high performing society, but the government isn’t society.

What we celebrate about the Olympics is the performance of the athletes. Good governance is necessary for athletes to perform at the highest level, but the rules aren’t why we watch the Olympics. Good governance allows Olympic athletes to realize their full potential. Olympic contests would be undermined if officials were both athletes and referees.

Good governance is necessary for a high performing society, but the government isn’t society. Government is not fundamentally what we celebrate on the 4th of July. The good society that good government enables is. Government exceeds its role and damages society when it becomes both regulator and competitor.