>> Keynes, the typical anti-free trader, big government, "liberal" guy. <<
shows what you know about keynes. he originally was an ardent internationalist and proponent of free trade, like most economists and intellectuals. it was only after the onset of the depression that he got a dose of how the real world worked and he began to change his views and understand the need for national self-sufficiency.
it's not at all surprising, most protectionists (for lack of a better word), start out as free traders. it's not hard to understand why. it sounds so good on paper. efficiencies, low prices for consumers, global unity and harmony as 17 countries all unite to make a pencil!
thomas jefferson was an ardent free-trader in his youth. young and idealistic, and an intellectual no less. eventually he discovered that what looks good on paper doesn't necessarily work in the real world. pat buchanan was an ardent free-trader until 1987. ronald reagan loved to preach free trade but when push came to shove he realized it was necessary to impose quotas and tariffs.
free trade is for young and naive, intellectual minds, which are full of wonder and splendor about all the noble things man can achieve when the world unites in trade and culture. it is a utopian fantasy, and whenever someone like keynes, jefferson, buchanan or whomever got away from the halls of academia they discovered that free trade fails to take into account human nature, which cannot be accounted for in an economic equation.
much like communism, which also sounded good on paper and swept across the globe fancying fertile young minds with visions of heaven on earth. it proved to be a total disaster just like free trade is proving. karl marx predicted as much.
p.s. trying to paint "anti-free-traders" into big government liberals is not only disingenuous, it shows how desperate you are.
i suppose all the presidents i listed plus people like hamilton, henry clay, alan keyes, buchanan, etc are all big govt liberals. uh huh! |
