The Reader’s Digest investigation asked Americans which was the biggest threat to the nation’s future—big business, big labor or big government. A whopping 67 percent replied “big government”. That is a big change over 40 years ago. A 1954 Opinion Research Corp. Poll found that only 16 percent of Americans indicted big government, given the same three choices. In a 1965 Gallup survey, those believing big government to be the problem had risen to 35 percent; by 1985, to 50 percent.
Now（1995）two of three Americans fear big government. Opinion researchers rarely see such a vast change in public attitude. When put in historical perspective, from the time of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal to the present, the fallen status of government as a protector and benefactor is extraordinary. We’ve returned to the instinctive American wariness of Washington so common before the Great Depression.
In our poll, taken before the November elections, the overwhelming majority of our respondents wanted to stop or roll back the impact of government. In answer to another question posed by The Digest, 79 percent said they wanted either no more than the current level of government services and taxes, or less government and lower taxes.
“It seems to me that we in the middle class bear most of the burden,” says Jo Nell Norman, 61, a nurse in Dyersburg, Tenn., who often wonders about the government’s judgment in spending her money.
Of Americans in our sample, 62 percent believe that politicians’ ethics and honesty have fallen. And what about Congress? Is it doing a good job? Or do members “spend more time thinking about their political futures than passing good legislation?”
Across generations, a thumping 89 percent thought the latter. “Congress always seems to be screwing up,” says one young Xer.
However, Americans are satisfied with their own lives and jobs. Four of five respondents were “completely” or “somewhat” satisfied. The figures held up across all ages - including Xers, whom many pundits have claimed are pessimistic about their future.
Keith Underbill, 22, of Fridley, Minn., finds his job as a telephone operator for a catalogue company “not challenging, not difficult” but still “satisfying because of the income.” He sees it as a springboard to bigger things. “I hope to start my own business someday, something in finance.” Looking deeper at jobs, we found 70 percent of Americans believe they are about where they should be, given their talents and effort. This is an issue where age always makes a difference, since older people, who are more established in their jobs, tend to be more satisfied, while younger workers are still trying to find the right niche. Sure enough, Xers scored 65 percent, about five points below average.
1.The survey has revealed that in the past 40 years the public faith in the American government has dropped by （ ）.
2.The U.S. government status in the public mind before the Great Depression （ ）.
3.It is clear that the people's great dislike for the government is related with （ ）.
4."Political future" in Paragraph 5 may mean （ ）.
5.Older people are unlikely to change their jobs so often since （ ）.
