Thursday, August 9, 2012

President Obama Wants to Duplicate the Automaker Bailouts

“I said, I believe in American workers, I believe in this American industry, and now the American auto industry has come roaring back,” he said. “Now I want to do the same thing with manufacturing jobs, not just in the auto industry, but in every industry.
Shortly after reading that, I saw this video:


The video above explains why "pro-business" policies like bailouts, subsidies, and monopolies hurt free markets. Fundamentally, government policies which burden the general welfare to benefit a particular welfare undermine free market capitalism. Here's the YouTube description for the "Is Capitalism 'Pro-Business'" video above:
In this video, Professor Steve Horwitz advocates for free market economic policy. He refutes the often recited claim that "What is good for General Motors is good for America" by explaining that pro-business legislation encourages behavior that is not beneficial to society or the business itself. He suggests that, in a free market, factors such as profit and competition encourage behavior that ultimately benefits society. Professor Horwitz illustrates that pro-business legislation restricts progress and therefore caters to the interests of industry rather than to consumers, whereas "supporters of free markets are ultimately pro-human and pro-people because it is through markets that we get the most innovation and we get the most goods and the cheapest prices."

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