The Road to Serfdom, or Atlas now non-fiction
Now that I have invoked not only one of the premier economists of the Austrian School (FA Hayek), but the mother of objectivist thought (Ayn Rand) as well, let's talk.
Why Socialism is taught as anything other than the abject failure that it leads to is beyond me. To have to suffer through studying this farce of an economic system is more than idiocy, it is dangerous. Marxism, of course is the same application. Why do I say that? Men are not perfect, and no matter how socialism is implemented, it is doomed to fail.
Exhibit 1 is Venezuela. Already the drums are beating to blame Maduro for failing to carry on Chavez's legacy. They also blame capital for fleeing the nation. I wonder why that is. A member of OPEC, and sitting on one of the largest known reserves of oil, one would think that if there was ever a case for Socialism to work, it would be there. So, what happened? Well, not satisfied with the royalties being received from the oil companies, Chavez (not Maduro) nationalized them. They took the equipment from these corporations, WITHOUT compensation, and ran the industry into the ground. For some reason, now that they are sitting with broken equipment, oil production slowed tremendously, the invitations to various oil companies to help them out have gone unheeded.
Most recently, the GM plant was nationalized. How they even have a market, where people don't even know when they are going to eat next is something in and of itself. Those capitalists at GM laid off their workers, so as to not be responsible for them. In these nations, more and more drastic measures are needed. Arms are pointed at citizens. Protests are shut down through violent means.
Exhibit 2 is France. You may say, what is wrong in France? Well, nothing now, but in 2012, the Socialists passed a 75% tax rate for the top bracket. Kind of important, as there are those here that would want to do the same thing. What happened? The richest of the rich in France, moved across the border to Belgium. How about tax revenue? Dropped. France did not renew the tax.
Capital will always flee when oppressed. It will relocate overseas, or maybe it will just sit stagnant. Whether an organized event as in Atlas, or just individuals feeling the tax cost outweighs the risk, it ends up being the same thing.
Of course, when there is an unfavorable response to the centralized command and control, more force is needed. If just the idea of "doing it for the people" is insufficient, then come the laws. Regulations can kill businesses, as we nearly saw with the Climate change energy BS. Actually, not nearly, the coal industry will never fully recover from the damage done. When the laws don't work, penalties are increased. Public shaming. Accusing people out of the mainstream to be "deniers" or fill in the hate "ism" of your choice. When that doesn't fully work, then you reach the end game, where the industry is either destroyed, or taken over by the government.
No matter how "benevolent" the leadership of a socialist movement may be, Those who produce know that the gun is not only implied, but very real, from the beginning. As governments get bigger and bigger, they require more resources. Resources that could be more efficiently used elsewhere.
Socialism looks good on a chalkboard, but when dealing with people, it CAN'T work. They can forcibly take their businesses, but they can't force the former owners to work with the same effort, now that they get nothing out of it.
When distributing based on need, people will just get needier. And those working will not work as much.
And... we have had a progressive income tax for over 100 years, specifically designed to redistribute wealth. And yet there is greater income inequality than ever. Why? Who is John Galt?
here is a simple video explaining how Socialism CAN'T work. enjoy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjUQMsGZPb4
Why Socialism is taught as anything other than the abject failure that it leads to is beyond me. To have to suffer through studying this farce of an economic system is more than idiocy, it is dangerous. Marxism, of course is the same application. Why do I say that? Men are not perfect, and no matter how socialism is implemented, it is doomed to fail.
Exhibit 1 is Venezuela. Already the drums are beating to blame Maduro for failing to carry on Chavez's legacy. They also blame capital for fleeing the nation. I wonder why that is. A member of OPEC, and sitting on one of the largest known reserves of oil, one would think that if there was ever a case for Socialism to work, it would be there. So, what happened? Well, not satisfied with the royalties being received from the oil companies, Chavez (not Maduro) nationalized them. They took the equipment from these corporations, WITHOUT compensation, and ran the industry into the ground. For some reason, now that they are sitting with broken equipment, oil production slowed tremendously, the invitations to various oil companies to help them out have gone unheeded.
Most recently, the GM plant was nationalized. How they even have a market, where people don't even know when they are going to eat next is something in and of itself. Those capitalists at GM laid off their workers, so as to not be responsible for them. In these nations, more and more drastic measures are needed. Arms are pointed at citizens. Protests are shut down through violent means.
Exhibit 2 is France. You may say, what is wrong in France? Well, nothing now, but in 2012, the Socialists passed a 75% tax rate for the top bracket. Kind of important, as there are those here that would want to do the same thing. What happened? The richest of the rich in France, moved across the border to Belgium. How about tax revenue? Dropped. France did not renew the tax.
Capital will always flee when oppressed. It will relocate overseas, or maybe it will just sit stagnant. Whether an organized event as in Atlas, or just individuals feeling the tax cost outweighs the risk, it ends up being the same thing.
Of course, when there is an unfavorable response to the centralized command and control, more force is needed. If just the idea of "doing it for the people" is insufficient, then come the laws. Regulations can kill businesses, as we nearly saw with the Climate change energy BS. Actually, not nearly, the coal industry will never fully recover from the damage done. When the laws don't work, penalties are increased. Public shaming. Accusing people out of the mainstream to be "deniers" or fill in the hate "ism" of your choice. When that doesn't fully work, then you reach the end game, where the industry is either destroyed, or taken over by the government.
No matter how "benevolent" the leadership of a socialist movement may be, Those who produce know that the gun is not only implied, but very real, from the beginning. As governments get bigger and bigger, they require more resources. Resources that could be more efficiently used elsewhere.
Socialism looks good on a chalkboard, but when dealing with people, it CAN'T work. They can forcibly take their businesses, but they can't force the former owners to work with the same effort, now that they get nothing out of it.
When distributing based on need, people will just get needier. And those working will not work as much.
And... we have had a progressive income tax for over 100 years, specifically designed to redistribute wealth. And yet there is greater income inequality than ever. Why? Who is John Galt?
here is a simple video explaining how Socialism CAN'T work. enjoy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjUQMsGZPb4
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