“It’s essential for people to pause and review economic history,” says economist Donald Boudreaux. “They’ll learn that prosperity tends to grow the more economically free we are.”
Public officials promise they will “assist” us.
President Donald Trump claims he will deliver the jobs and the future you deserve.
President Joe Biden often asserted that “assistance is on the way.”
I prefer Ronald Reagan’s line: “The nine most frightening words in the English language are, ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help.'”
An economy operates best when the government steps aside and allows free-market competition to function.
That understanding guides economist Donald Boudreaux, which is why The Triumph of Economic Freedom is the title of his latest book.
Boudreaux states in a new video: “The further we move away from free markets, the worse things get.”
Under Biden, spending helped push up inflation, and his administration funneled billions to politically connected firms like Intel.
Nowadays, Trump is pursuing comparable policies.
“Free markets are under pressure now,” says Boudreaux. “It’s crucial for people to step back, study economic history…they’ll discover that we prosper more the freer our economy is.”
Today, many blame greed and free markets for the soaring costs of housing and child care.
“Housing prices are rising largely due to government interference!” argues Boudreaux. “Zoning and land-use constraints shrink supply and curb development. Rent-control measures shrink the rental stock… and daycare costs are inflated by regulatory red tape.”
Homes and child care would be cheaper and better if businesses could serve customers without government interference.
Likewise, AI is expected to cut costs, but it will also displace workers, so misguided lawmakers like Senator Josh Hawley (R–Mo.) urge laws to shield incumbent jobs. That’s a poor idea, Boudreaux contends.
“Some jobs disappear, but others emerge. The jobs that appear tend to be better….If we still used the same technology we possessed forty years ago, web designers would be eight-legged… Our living standards rise thanks to these innovations…People may resist change, but you can’t achieve economic growth without it.”
Some lawmakers want to dictate to retailers how many self-checkout lanes they must have and how many staff should operate the registers.
“How can the government know the ‘right’ number of workers for any given business? That’s up to the businesses themselves,” says Boudreaux. “It’s in their interest to run efficiently, which helps keep prices down. When the government intervenes in this way, prices tend to rise.”
Seattle’s newly elected socialist mayor, Katie Wilson, says she will help people by providing more leisure time.
“You should have time to read a book and lie on the grass,” she explains. “We need bread. But we need roses, too.”
“Pretty words,” laughs Boudreaux, “but what business is it of the government to decide how people should spend their time? That’s an individual choice. Why should the government tilt the scale?”
“To make life nicer,” I respond.
“If I want to work more, you’re making life worse for me, not nicer. I can smell the roses in my own time.”
Mayor Wilson also says, “We cannot allow giant grocery chains to…close stores at will and abandon food deserts.”
“What she’s proposing,” retorts Boudreaux, “is to prevent stores from closing or shrinking. If she pursues that, you’ll see fewer stores opening in Seattle in the long run.”
When politicians believe they know better how to help people, they sometimes come up with ridiculous ideas, such as a Minnesota legislator’s plan to study the “benefits of shoplifting” on the grounds that “perhaps people rely on it…maybe it assists them.”
“Then let’s also study the benefits of pickpocketing, armed robbery, and burglary,” answers Boudreaux. “After all, those activities generate income for some.”
“These politicians just want to be kind,” I push back.
“Kindness isn’t shown to those harmed by shoplifting. It raises the costs of running grocery stores…which translates into higher grocery prices for low-income families.”
More often than not, government attempts to help end up making things worse.
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