If no one feared government, it would have no power. Power = ability to get people to do what you say. All of that comes from fear of what would happen if you don't. If you realize nothing will, you don't abide and they're powerless.
It exists because people believe it is necessary. They obey it because they believe there is no way civilization could exist without it. Thomas Hobbes fooled them all.
Governments can't control you. They can only tell you things. If enough people stop being docile and afraid and just say fuck you, we're going on living our lives, there's nothing governments can do.
The big interesting problems in the world have infinite, partially correct answers. How to cut costs, attract customers, build a tool that's valuable, colonize mars, etc.
If US elections were one person one vote through and through, we'd see something like Ron Paul vs Bernie Sanders every year. And Ron Paul would win 70-30.