The villification of our benefactors

Reader comment on: Democrats Run Against Vultures, Vampires

Submitted by Harry Binswanger, Aug 6, 2019 00:10

Ira, you made some good points. The strongest point to make, however, is deeper: it is only government, never business, that imposes penalties. Business operates by voluntary transactions at every stage. If makes you offers that you *can* refuse--and do hundreds of times a day (ads on this very page for things that you will not buy).

In stark contrast, government deals in compulsion. You cannot refuse to obey the law. The police will come after you if you, for instance, say about your tax bill "Thanks, but I'd rather keep the money."

Government compels obedience at gunpoint. You obey or lose. Business solicits your business by offering to trade with you, value for value. Business interactions are win-win.

See my article, "The Dollar and the Gun," in the collection, Why Businessmen Need Philosophy (on Amazon).

Ayn Rand said it first and best in "America's Persecuted Minority: Big Business":

"Now let me define the difference between economic power and political power: economic power is exercised by means of a positive, by offering men a reward, an incentive, a payment, a value; political power Is exercised by means of a negative, by the threat of punishment, injury, imprisonment, destruction. The businessman's tool is values; the bureaucrat's tool is fear." (Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal)

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