About twelve months ago on this blog, I wrote a short piece about the release of Liberty Fund’s volume of essays concerning the great French classical liberal Frederic Bastiat.
Referring to the economic folly of government taxing to finance government subsidies, Bastiat said this in a letter to his longtime friend Felix Coudroy:
the whole mechanism consists in taking away ten to give back eight, not to mention the true freedom that will be destroyed in the operation!
In the very first response to the post, Catallaxy colleague Rafe Champion said that this statement ought to be transcribed onto the entrances of legislative assemblies everywhere. I couldn’t agree more!
Today I’ve found something else which should appear at the entrances of all buildings which house politicians, government bureaucrats, and even those who directly receive subsidies and handouts from governments (conscripted from the beleagured taxpayer, of course):
HT: Fraser Institute on Facebook.
Thank you, that image will come in very handy.
Token
19 Oct 12 at 12:00 pm
The image is a neat summary of Milton Friedman’s famous statement about the realisation of efficiency under different incentive structures, and that statement in turn has to rank as one of the most famous in the history of classical liberalism.
Julie Novak
19 Oct 12 at 12:57 pm
It’s a nice thought Julie, but I don’t think most public servants would actually get it.
Keith
19 Oct 12 at 1:08 pm
Julie, I love the quote from Milt and have used that statement so many times in many different social/business scenarios. It is just shocking common sense.
You are correct it needs to be placed where people who are responsible for consuming/spending other people’s money can see it.
Token
19 Oct 12 at 2:50 pm
Hate to be the lawyer that I am, but how about some definitions? Without them it means pretty much anything to anyone.
Anon
24 Oct 12 at 3:23 pm
No. It means what it says.
.
24 Oct 12 at 3:27 pm
Actually it doesn’t, because to me it is pretty much meaningless.
Perhaps you can give an example for each quadrant?
Anon
24 Oct 12 at 3:37 pm