Comments on: What Spending and Deficits Do

By: Trent Whatcott

Trent Whatcott — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 02:26:40 +0000

Yes, but was Henry Hazlitt ever a community organizer?

By: Donald M. Coder

Donald M. Coder — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 01:27:07 +0000

From my vantage point here in China, it is obvious that the “new American government” is not interested in helping the people with health care, employment, or anything else. There is one and only one goal, and that is control. Here is one comment from my Chinese students: “Do you think it is possible that America could go back to encouraging private enterprise and market economy as in the past?”

By: Allen Hans

Allen Hans — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 01:05:26 +0000

I too note that the failure of teaching valid free market economic principles has and will continue to cause significant harm to the economic freedom that has fueled our country’s growth and development.

At this time I see a deliberate effort by government taking place that redirects our business paradigm and financial structure in the wrong direction. These changes that are being implemented by the government is demonstrated in the ‘bail out’ legislation where the government is either ‘buying or underwriting’ bad debt of failed or failing companies and industries. This to me represents a decided move in the takeover of the country’s free market via the means of production and finance. I believe it is a thinly disguised move along the discredited road toward ’socialism’.

While many countries that were, and still are, under economic socialism have learned the lessons that government control of the economy leads to failure of the free market and positive growth and expansion of the economy and productivity of business and citizens. Our government is dangerously moving toward these failed models.

I further note that in the ‘bail out bill’ there is one section in particular that receive NO mention in the media or in the discussion. A section in the bailout bill increases the ‘ceiling’ on the national DEBT from $10 trillion to $11.3 trillion!. That is a 13% increase. Someone has to pay for this largess, you and me as taxpayers.

By: DD

DD — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 00:05:15 +0000

Robert,

It is not just a matter of teaching “Economics”, but teaching it correctly and objectively. sound Economics, especially what is today unfortunately called “Austrian Economics” would reveal the nature of Government and its actions. It would be great for our freedom, but suicide for Government.

Think about it, what are the ramifications of this article by Hazlitt for example? Government has no business in the economy, no business in welfare, and the more it interferes, the more damage it will inflict on all of us. In other words, what we need is an unregulated free market unhampered by taxation and Government welfare programs.

Sound economics is not the problem, it is its obvious conclusions. With the schools under the control of Government, and even some private schools that are only “chartered” by Government, it is far more likely to learn about the progress of “Socialism” in America, then the virtue of “Capitalism”.

By: Robert A. Fletcher

Robert A. Fletcher — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 20:10:49 +0000

I have been reading FEE for over 40 years. Ecomic education is a national tragedy. The education system does so poorly at teaching the economics of both captialism and socialism that I believe a vast majority of our citizens have insuffcient knowledge regarding what made America the Greatest. How much longer do we have before the complete breakdown of our capitalistic system?.