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The Stupidity of the Young
So there I am, minding my own business at the Paris Air Show, when who should walk up to our stand but three young and bright engineering students. French, but still engaging and fun.
As it was a quiet moment in between waves of crowds, we started a conversation — about how cool our technology is, how neat their respective engineering fields of study are … and then … politics!
Unlike (some) other Ricochetti, I really delight in what the English call “having a go.” I asked these French students how France went from being 6th in the world in per-capita income in the 1960s, to barely 30th today.
“Capitalism!” they proudly proclaimed. I let ’em have it. They had never, apparently, heard any other explanation.
Published in General
Oh, for the video of that!
They are sort of, kind of right. France rejected capitalism and embraced socialism to a greater extent than many other nations. As a result, nations which embraced capitalism and rejected socialism to a greater extent than France did much better economically than France, eventually passing France.
Capitalism is one of the greatest economic engines in history while socialism is one of the biggest economic brakes. So capitalism is the answer – just not in the way they think it is.
Seawriter
Well they are right, its just that it isn’t in the way they imagine it to be.
Technically they are correct. It’s just that the capitalism was of those who passed France by.
Too stupid for words.
So, what was the reaction to your explanation? Stunned silence? Angry defiance? Do tell.
Yes. I wanted to say “Yes, capitalism in India.” But apparently India is still behind.
Shouldn’t be long now
Give it a bit more time, let Pakistan stay ahead of India in the Index of Economic Freedom, add a bit more rule of law, defeat some terrorists, etc.–and capitalism in Pakistan may well also bring Pakistan ahead of France.
Tongue-tied confusion.
Bravo, @iwe! Maybe you planted some seeds that will bloom at some point? Welcome home!
Argentina’s another example of this.
So is Venezuela – albeit more extreme.
Seawriter
iWe,
Sounds like the blind faith of French youth in socialism. Macron can parade around like a capitalist all he wants but if the net tax rate is over fifty percent then it’s de facto socialism even if the French government doesn’t take you over.
I had an interesting conversation with an Uber driver recently. He was from Argentina but knew a lot of people from Venezuela. He said they all told him the same story. The old government had been very corrupt everybody hated being forced to pay the petty officials off for everything. However, there was jobs and food in the market. Now, they are starving and when they protest they are being killed by Maduro’s thugs. Out of the frying pan and into the fire.
If Macron can’t reform anything they will be as frustrated with him as they were with Holland. Somehow the French are still having their cake and eating it too. When your students are a little older and they realize how much of a burden all this socialism is they may see things differently. For now, you are challenging their most sacred beliefs.
Regards,
Jim
I think it was Twain that said ” youth is wasted on the young. The Amish say “to soon old to late smart.”
So is the United States.
I know these terms are used in different ways (and I’m influenced by Grudem’s and Asmus’ discussion), but here are some important points.
There is such a thing as an economic system in which private capital funds investment (a good definiens for the term “capitalism”).
There is such a thing as an economic system in which economic decisions are freely made by citizens (a good definiens for the term “free market system”).
All of the former are among the latter. But not vice versa. There are economies where private capital funds investment but where citizens do not freely make economic decisions. Among them are the afore-mentioned Pakistan and India (to an extent), France (to a lesser extent), and even the United States (to a small extent).
The argument people make is that there are problems in these economies, and therefore all capitalism is bad. In the same way we could argue that hyenas are dangerous, and thus that all dogs are bad.
Haha! That is funny. Distorted youth. One gets the feeling it’s not just the young. A culture’s mythos define their world view.
I’m sure that’s true, more’s the pity. Good for you.
From the 1946 BBC Radio program:
France is 39th according to World Factbook.
It helps to have lots of oil or be a small banking center/tax haven.
Oil extraction is financed and used by capitalist enterprises, banking centers finance capitalist enterprises, and tax havens provide tax efficiency for capitalist enterprises. So the kids were right: There’s a whole lot of capitalism going on in the higher-ranked countries, pushing France down to its position on the list.
There are lots of ways of measuring this, and France might be 27th or 30th. It surely is not top 10, though – and it was in the 1960s. The country has fallen far.
But the 1960s were so last century. If it is new, it has to be better, right?
(Which is the thinking that has progressives pushing 16th century energy production – windmills – and 19th century transportation – trains.)
Seawriter
Yet, the fall is only relative not absolute. They are not actually poorer than they were in the 1960’s. It is just that many have gotten much richer.