The only thing that government has to do, indeed the only thing that they have ever had to do, is balance their budgets. Taxes should fund spending, year after year. Need more spending? Raise more taxes. People don't like taxes? Lower spending. Keeping it balanced is the only goal.

When things get our of balance, the entire world goes to crap. Go out of balance year after year, decade after year, and there's a crap storm. That's what we are facing now. If a government ever decides to balance their budget and exist within the taxable revenue streams of their citizens, those citizens will be happy and they will thrive. Too bad we have zero examples of that right now, anywhere.