Privatizing public industries isn't always a good idea. They've been doing a lot of that here in Canada, actually, over the last few years simply because it was becoming too expensive for the government to run everything.
Once the government relinquishes it's control however, it's extremely difficult to get it back. For example, the telephone company here in Manitoba used to be a Crown corporation until a few years ago when they sold it. Almost immediately afterwards, the company that bought the phone system tried to raise the rates quite drastically. Because of the massive public outcry, the government had to step back in and force them to reduce the fees. Afterall, if the "big and bloated" government could offer basic phone service for $20/month, there's no reason a corporation couldn't do it for the same (especially since the phone company was already getting big subsidies).
Incidentally, did the phone company want to raise it's rates so it could provide superior service? No, they wanted the cash to build themselves a fancy headquarter building and to pay the executives who were now making six-figure salaries as opposed to slightly above-average government salaries.
The same thing happens in every other industry here that's been privatized. In fact, there's a lot of people now that want to get rid of public automobile insurance because "it costs way to much." What they don't realize is that private insurance companies grab you by the balls and don't let go. On average, car insurance costs about $1500/year here in Manitoba. Depending on the company you choose for insurance in Ontario (which is privatized), you'll be paying around $5000 for the same vehicle, and not much less. If your driving record is shitty, it'll be waaaay more.
So, what do you think of that, Mr. Government-takes-too-much-money?
