My thoughts pretty much exactly. Making sure people aren't left stranded is essential. That's what creates crime, poverty, ghettos, sickness etc and results with huge loss of productivity. Unless of course we're talking about social darwinism and feel it's ok for them to just die off.

I want no part with a nanny state. There are definitely limits to where I want the state to stick its nose in, but I also think there are parts in which I think its nose is needed. Not all people are concerned how they harm others when they're reaching for their goals and taking care of themselves, and somebody needs to keep them in check. The best solution I'm aware of is a government with central policing. I don't care if it's optimal with regard to efficiency and I don't care how much your local police force is corrupt and useless, in many places it's been shown to work and can most likely therefore in other places too. The key is it needs to be available for everybody, not just those who can afford it.

I don't care what the number of regulations is, important is that there's enough of them and they're smart. The legislative process should be a science and evidence based PDCA cycle. Laws and regulations should undergo continuous improvement and refinement based on results and metrics.