Without a public debate or formal policy decision, contractors have become a virtual fourth branch of government. On the rise for decades, spending on federal contracts has soared during the Bush administration, to about $400 billion last year from $207 billion in 2000, fueled by the war in Iraq, domestic security and Hurricane Katrina, but also by a philosophy that encourages outsourcing almost everything government does. (New York Times, Sunday)
This is what passes for privatization.
FEE Timely Classic
Privatization: Two Perils by Ridgway K. Foley, Jr.