Nobody will deny that there are certain things that government does very well. But those things were intended by the founders of the United States to be relatively few and enacted in ways that preserve the freedoms and rights of citizens. Anyone looking around can see that’s not what we have today. The government has grown larger and larger, asserting its power in a wide variety of areas that, in spite of all the political rhetoric, actually kill the economy and the opportunities of the average citizen. On this episode of the podcast Thomas E. Woods joins me to talk about the ways government has come to stifle opportunity and make it harder for the little guy. You’ll want to hear this one.
Recent surveys show that among younger generations - particularly those who have come of voting age within the past few years - socialism is more and more appealing. My guest today, Thomas Woods says that if the socialism they are being sold really existed, everyone WOULD want it. The problem is that they’re not being told the whole story of what socialism really does in the world. If they were, its appeal wouldn’t be nearly as strong. You can hear the true story behind the track record of socialist governments historically and why it’s still a bad idea today, in this episode.
The United States has been blessed with prosperity and freedom like no other nation in history. The capitalism upon which its economy has been built is so successful in fact that its prosperity affords many the people opportunity to become professional intellectuals, academics who study, think, and analyze the very thing that has given them the luxury to do so. It’s typically these individuals who become ultra critical of the capitalist system that birthed them - and their influence throughout education and government begins to destroy the very thing that gives them the livelihood they enjoy. It’s a strange oxymoron that you’ll learn more about on this episode with Thomas E. Woods.
Many times the cry of the left is that in order to address poverty issues within the United States the minimum wage needs to be raised. The problem is that when a governmental regulation like minimum wage legislation comes into play, it doesn’t create more jobs - as it is purported to do - it removes jobs from the economy because employers can’t afford to pay the wage required. So they do without, cut back, and produce less. When companies don’t make a profit, less money is funneled into the economy, fewer people have the opportunity to make their own living, and everyone suffers as a result. On this episode, you can hear more of the reasons why minimum wage legislation of any kind is a bad idea from my guest, Thomas E. Woods.
The motivation behind student loans is a noble one. Somebody, someplace in the not-so-distant past wanted to provide an education to anyone who wanted one. But student loans were simply a bad idea for making that happen. Student loans place a burden of debt on a portion of the population that can least afford to pay it, making them beholden to the government and saddled with an obligation that will hinder their professional growth for years into the future. It’s like digging an early grave via the vehicle of debt. And the governmental regulation behind student loans caused it to happen. Find out more about why student loans are a bad idea, in this episode.