The Freeman 1999
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Ideas On Liberty' August 1999 Vol. 49, No.8 8 Train Wreck by Gregory Bresiger , 12 A College Fund on the Social Security Model by William B. Conerly 16 Freedom and Morality in the Plays of Tom Stoppard by Norman Barry 20 Friendship and the Free Society by Andrew I. Cohen 23 The Immorality of Antitrust Law by D. T. Armentano 27 Paranoia About Paranoia in American Politics by James Bovard 31 Socialized Medicine-One Size Fits None by Karen Selick 35 William H. Hutt: A Centenary Appreciation by Richard M Ebeling 39 Greens Against Greens by Raymond J Keating 43 Banned in Austin by George C. Leef 48 Protection for Bad Managers by Christopher Mayer , 51 Academic Freedom on Religious Campuses by James R. Otteson 4 THOUGHTS on FREEDOM-True False Consciousness by Donald J Boudreaux 14 IDEAS and CONSEQUENCES-James U. Blanchard III: Champion of Liberty and Sound Money by Lawrence W. Reed 25 POTOMAC PRINCIPLES-Voluntarism Should Be Voluntary by Doug Bandow 33 PERIPATETICS-May the Force Not Be With You by Sheldon Richman , 46 ECONOMIC NOTIONS-Conservation and Speculation by Dwight R. Lee 54 ECONOMICS on TRIAL-Say's Law Is Back by Mark Skousen 63 THE PURSUIT of HAPPINESS-An Open Letter to the California Legislature by Charles W. Baird 2 Perspective-Winners and Winners by Sheldon Richman 6 Markets Need a Hidden Fist? It Just Ain't So! by Andrew P. Morriss 56 Book Reviews The Choctaw Revolution by Peter 1. Ferrara, reviewed by George C. Leef; The Great Depression: An International Disaster of Perverse Economic Policies by Thomas E. Hall and 1. David Ferguson, reviewed by Michael R. Adamson; The Noblest Triumph: Property and Prosperity Through the Ages: by Tom Bethell, reviewed by William R. Allen; Two Lucky People by Milton and Rose D. Friedman, reviewed by Bill Field; Global Greens: Inside the International Environmental Establishment by James M. Sheehan, reviewed by Jane S. Shaw. THE FI\EEMAN Ideas 0/1 Liberty Winners and Winners Published by The Foundation for Economic Education Books and articles by the dozen bemoan the Irvington-on-Hudson, NY 10533 gap between "winners and losers" in today's Phone (914) 591-7230 FAX (914) 591-8910 E-mail: [email protected] economic boom. Even writers not associated FEE Home Page: http://www.fee.org with socialism have joined the moaners' cho President: Donald J. Boudreaux rus. For example, conservative Edward Editor: Sheldon Richman Luttwak writes in his new book, trendily titled Managing Editor: Beth A. Hoffman Turbo-Capitalism: Winners and Losers in the Editor Emeritus Global Economy, "living in a country that so Paul L. Poirot greatly respects and admires high-earning Book Review Editor winners, losers find it hard to preserve their George C. Leef self-esteem." Editorial Assistant Mary Ann Murphy Let's ignore the psychobabble and look at Columnists this idea ofwinners and losers. In games, the Charles W. Baird object is to win, which means to fulfill some Doug Bandow arbitrary conditions defined by the rules ofthe Dwight R. Lee game. Because one player or team wins, the Lawrence W. Reed Russell Roberts other loses. The victory and loss are not inde Mark Skousen pendent events. That's why we say the Yankees Thomas Szasz beat the Padres in the World Series. Walter Williams Writers who describe the economic process Contributing Editors in terms ofwinners and losers indicate, inten Peter J. Boettke Clarence B. Carson tionally or not, that the same zero-sum princi Thomas 1. DiLorenzo pIe applies: namely, that people who make Burton W. Folsom, Jr. high incomes are responsible for others' mak Joseph S. Fulda ing low incomes. But how can that be? Is Bill Bettina Bien Greaves Gates the reason that some people earn only Robert Higgs John Hospers the minimum wage? Does anyone live in Raymond 1. Keating poverty because Sam Walton got rich? Daniel B. Klein That's not only untrue, it's worse than Wendy McElroy untrue. The fortunes of Gates, Walton, and Tibor R. Machan anyone who earns a high income are the con Andrew P. Morriss Ronald Nash sequences of their having enriched a multi Edmund A. Opitz tude ofpeople considerably less wealthy than James L. Payne themselves. You have to produce things people William H. Peterson want ifyou intend to get rich (unless you find Jane S. Shaw a way to milk the taxpayers). Market activity Richard H. Timberlake is a positive-sum, or win-win, process. In a Lawrence H. White free (or free-ish) economy, the rich get richer The Freeman is the monthly publication of The Foundation for Eco nomic Education, Inc., Irvington-on-Hudson, NY 10533. FEE, by making the "poor" richer. If you don't established in 1946 by Leonard E. Read, is a non-political, educational champion of private property, the free market, and limited government. believe it, ask yourself where would you FEE is classified as a 26 USC 50l(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. rather be "poor," here or in India? Copyright © 1999 by The Foundation for Economic Education. Per mission is granted to reprint any article in this issue, except "Socialized To be sure, people with acute entrepreneur Medicine," provided credit is given and two copies of the reprinted material are sent to FEE. ial alertness or valuable skills and knowledge The costs of Foundation projects and services are met through dona tions, which are invited in any amount. Donors of $30.00 or more will do spectacularly well. By comparison, the receive a subscription to The Freeman. For delivery outside the United people who lack those things will seem to be States: $45.00 to Canada; $55.00 to all other countries. Student sub scriptions are $10.00 for the nine-month academic year; $5.00 per losers. But they aren't. And since there is semester. Additional copies ofthis issue of The Freeman are $3.00 each. Bound volumes of The Freeman are available from The Foundation unlimited wealth yet to be created, anyone-if for calendar years 1972 to date. The Freeman is available in microform from University Microfilms, 300 N. Zeeb Rd., Ann Arbor, MI 48106. 2 Cover: Courtesy Thomas E. McMaster. free-can have his shot at being a "winner." This month marks the centenary of the Whatever is holding a particular person back, birth of the late W H. Hutt, an important we can be sure it isn't the people who have and prolific free-market economist. Richard already succeeded. Ebeling contributes an appreciation of Hutt's long career. *** Golf used to be a relaxing pastime. Then American collectivists have long wanted the environmentalists came along. Ray Keat the government to nationalize the railroads. ing explains. They finally got their wish in recent decades. Lawyers have long been jealous of their As Gregory Bresiger shows, they should have monopoly in the practice oflaw. George Leef been more careful about what they wished for. describes the lengths to which the profession What if family finances were run like the is willing to go to prevent people from obtain Social Security Trust Fund? William Conerly ing legal advice outside approved channels. describes his imaginative method offinancing Attempts by states to impede corporate his children's college education without hav takeovers are presented in humanitarian ing to give up anything. terms. But as Christopher Mayer explains, The Academy Award for the best movie in they are special-interest bids that undermine 1998 went to Shakespeare in Love. The script property rights. was co-written by Tom Stoppard, whose plays The clash between academic freedom and have a feature that sets him apart from most of freedom of association may seem irreconcil the arts world: anti-collectivism. Norman able-until a missing element is brought into Barry looks at the philosophy that underlies the debate. A controversy at the University of Stoppard's work. Notre Dame prompts James Otteson's dis The market order has been credited for course on rights real and imagined. many good things. Andrew Cohen finds one In the columns department, Donald more way it benefits us: it provides a founda Boudreaux distinguishes real false cons tion for friendship. ciousness from false false consciousness; Antitrust law's interference with business Lawrence Reed remembers hard-money man efficiency has long been documented by econ James Blanchard; Doug Bandow argues for omists and legal scholars. What gets far too voluntary voluntarism; Dwight Lee links con little attention is its immorality and injustice. servation to speculation; Mark Skousen D. T. Armentano demonstrates that the law reminds us of what Say really said; and fails the test ofethics too. Charles Baird reads the California legislature Ever since historian Richard Hofstadter the riot act about compulsory unionism wrote his book The Paranoid Tradition in for professors. Andrew Morriss wonders if American Politics, statists have had a conve a hidden fist is really necessary to protect nient way to smear any uncompromising the invisible hand and decides "It Just Ain't advocate of individual liberty and limited So!" government. James Bovard takes a close look Book reviews this month examine the fed at the book, the thesis, and the author. eral government's welfare state for Indians, Medical treatment presents many complex the Great Depression, the importance ofprop ethical issues. State intervention in health erty, the lives of two lucky people, and the care only makes difficult matters worse. global environmental movement. Karen Selick discusses a case from Canada. -SHELDON RICHMAN 3 e>n by Donald J. Boudreaux True False Consciousness few years ago I listened to a professor cept out ofhand. People, as economists inele Afrom a prestigious law school speak on gantly say, are rational.