As far as your personal goals are and what you actually want to do with your life, it should never have to do with the government. You should never depend on the government for your retirement, your financial security, for anything. If you do, you're screwed.
In many ways, people growing up with the Web and now the Semantic Web take the power at their fingertips for granted.
My own being can be judged by the depths I reach in making these historical origins my own.