Congressman Jim Moran is a dolt. An excerpt from a local DC newspaper followed by comments from the von Mises blog:
The bill, which was introduced last week, will contain more than $500 billion in spending that — coupled with more than $200 billion in tax cuts — Congress hopes will stimulate the economy and drag the country out of recession. But where will all this spending go? No one’s exactly sure, [Congressman Jim] Moran said, and that is why now is the time for localities across the country to be lobbying for a piece of this federal funding. “The biggest threat, these economists tell us, is that whatever the government does it will be too little and too late. So we’re going to act posthaste,” Moran said. “Those communities, those organizations that are ready with projects that can begin immediately are the ones who are going to get the money.”
I love this excerpt about the Moran comments:
So, if we follow Moran’s argument, the best economic policy is to blindly spend money in a panic based on who organizes the most effective lobbying campaign. Nothing could go wrong with this plan…Moran’s wisdom is evident: You can easily employ millions of people in government-financed jobs if you’re just willing to incur enough debt. Obviously, these jobs will continue to exist after government financing ceases and it becomes apparent there’s no market demand for these positions. Seriously, how can one refute Moran’s superior economic reasoning? Government spending = prosperity. It’s amazing it took humanity until 2009 to realize this self-evident truth.
Where does it all end? I can’t help but think of the scene from Pink Floyd’s The Wall where school kids walk the conveyor belt ultimately being ground into hamburger:
Apparently, this is the new American way: the secure feeling of being like everyone else all the while headed nowhere except toward ground chuck (see time code of 4:11 in video). I almost forgot the animated version of the grinder from ‘The Wall’ too. A screen shot:
Maybe the “collective” will not be so bad. I found this little bit on socialism. It makes me want to sign up!
Socialism would also enable us to raise our living standards dramatically by ending the billions of dollars thrown away on arms production and “defense,” by ending the waste, duplication and inefficiency of capitalist industries, and by returning millions of soldiers and unemployed workers to useful occupations. In socialist society there would be no wage system. Workers would receive the social value of their labor. And since the people would collectively own the industries, anyone would be free to select any occupation in which he or she has an interest and aptitude. No longer would workers live under the fear of being laid off, or be compelled to spend their lives at some job they hate or are unsuited for. Also, since the people would collectively own the colleges and universities, no longer would workers be denied education or training because they lack the money to buy it. Furthermore, under socialism we would produce for use and to satisfy the needs of all the people. Under capitalism the industries operate for one purpose—to earn a profit for their owners. Under this system, food is not grown primarily to be eaten. It is grown to be sold. Cars are not manufactured primarily to be driven. They are made to be sold. If there are enough buyers here and abroad, then the capitalists will have their factories turn out cars, appliances, pianos and everything else for which buyers can be found. But if people lack money, if the domestic and foreign markets cannot absorb them, then these factories shut down and the country stagnates, no matter how much people need these commodities.
