[Washington Post] Much has been written about the looming Social Security crisis and the runaway costs of health care entitlements. As the baby boomers retire between about 2010 and 2030, and the number of beneficiaries relative to taxpayers swells, an unreformed system is likely to crash or suck other social programs dry. But as disturbing as this scenario is, the emphasis on how we will pay for these programs has overshadowed an equally important question: how government's role already is changing because of the ever-increasing percentage of the national budget that is being used to cover permanent spending commitments.