It is quite curious that so many expert economists have such strongly conflicting opinions.  That means that a great many of these experts are not only wrong, but considering that they influence vital policies, they are dangerously wrong.

Were economics an exact science, leftist economists would be revealed to be flat-earth proponents.  Economics is not always exact, but it is far more scientific than it appears to be on the surface.  At least the flat earth proponents, wrong as they are, do not endanger us -- they won’t make us fall off the edge.  By contrast, leftist economic policy has brought us to unsustainable levels of debt.  We are on the precipice of a historic collapse, one that will impoverish millions and destabilize the nation at a time when we are facing military crises from Taiwan to Ukraine and elsewhere.  

One need not be a degreed economist to understand the basics, even though many supposedly expert economists obviously do not.  A grievous example of this can be seen in the way that the Roosevelt administration handled the Great Depression which began in 1929.  Roosevelt’s policies made the situation worse and made it last longer.

World War Two masked the defects of Roosevelt’s socialist intervention, and when the war ended, after a brief spending boom which relieved pent-up demand, the economy began once again to decline.  The government once again stepped in, and ever since, its role in attempting to repair the damage that it causes has brought us to unprecedented amounts of national debt.  Catastrophe looms.

Yet, many economists seem lost in the woods as to the causes and remedies.  It does not require the proverbial rocket scientist to understand that living profligately on one’s credit card must inevitably end in bankruptcy.  If you spend more than you have, if you borrow more than you can repay, if the projected interest will exceed your income, then obviously, you will impoverish yourself.  The more money that is printed, the less each dollar will buy.  How is it that so many economists seem not to know this?

The basics of economics are, like gravity, a force of nature that cannot long be ignored.  Here are some of them:

- People spend their own money more wisely, and more productively, than do the governments which confiscate that money for their own ends.

- People will work to produce things that other people are willing to purchase, thus exchanging value for value, at mutual benefit.  Legitimate self-interest is not greed.

- Economies thrive when labor is applied to natural resources.  Those natural resources become wealth.  They should be used, not worshipped.

Perhaps the leftist economists do indeed understand all this.  If so, then that is itself a scary prospect.  Perhaps, to use a metaphor, they know they are sinking the ship, but believe they have secured a seat on a lifeboat, however few lifeboats there may be.  And let’s face it, to stretch the analogy, some of those lifeboats are in reality, luxury yachts, which only a few will be privileged to board. 

This may explain a lot.  It is why those at the top are suggesting that we should eat insects, while they undoubtedly will be dining on much finer fare.  It is why they are saying that we will own nothing and be happy.  It is why they intend to do away with fossil fuels while sending small children in Africa to mine lithium for the batteries in their expensive cars.

Maybe their plan will succeed, at least for them.  Perhaps the world is, after all, flat.

Graphic credit:  Nick Youngson CC BY-SA 3.0 Alpha Stock Images