Tag: "Frederic Bastiat"

Frederic Bastiat On Troops, Henry Hazlitt on Bureaucrats11th March 2013

Last week we introduced the great French economic philosopher, Frederic Bastiat, and his Broken Window, which goes to the root of the current problems with our bodies economic and politic, and perhaps much of human thought. I promised to pick up with more of his erudite thoughts, and so here we go ... Remember that Bastiat was born in 1801, and even though he died young, of tuberculosis in 1850, he lived through an era of revolution, anarchy, authoritarianism, monarchy and republic. With all

Frederic Bastiat: The Broken Window10th March 2013

This magnificent angel forms part of the famous Arc de Triomphe in Paris, built to recognise those who fought and died for France from the French Revolutionary Wars onwards. Such glorious architecture reminds us that what we do today is but a modest spec in the passage of time, and that many dramas have been acted out in the lives of millions long before we arrived on the scene. As a boy I was fascinated by the Napoleonic Wars. The different styles of leadership, the Armies across Europe

Lemmings and the Cliff: The false obsession with GDP8th January 2013

What a start to 2013! In the United States days were extended to fit political need, so that those looking to “sustain growth” could rejoice in the half-baked fiscal fudge that’ll last for a couple of months at best. In the UK doomsters have proclaimed that weakness in the service sector will undoubtedly lead to a “triple-dip” recession. Just think how many months of joy the media will have speculating and almost celebrating if that comes to pass! Governments and established media