"the" government

Question

I've been told, as far back as I can remember, to always use "the government" (with the exception when I compare different governments where I may be able to use "a government") in my sentence. But in a book written by a former student at Harvard Law School (not that this is really relevant), he constantly uses "government" without "the".

e.g.
... a number (of them) have ... taken on prominent positions in government - assistant cabinet secretaries ...
... it's the only course that would concentrate expressly on the relationship between government and private citizens ...

Are these simply bad grammers or what?
Any comment?

A Cornish Pasty · Accepted Answer

The usage is correct.

It's hard to explain, but I think it's got something to do with an abstract idea of government.

See I just used it there without realising.

As far as I can best sum up, "government" is used when it's just a general idea of country administration, and "the government" is used when a specific authority is meant.

For example:

The government is wasting far too much money. (A particular government of a country is meant)
Many people who work in government become corrupt. (All governments in general, like a field of employment)

I'm sorry I can't explain it very clearly, maybe someone else here could clarify it?

"the" government

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