Unapprecieated spontaneous order

by Tironius, created Sunday, October 26, 2008, with permalink

“The more complex the problem, the more planning you need. But it’s not planning at the top. It’s planning from the bottom up.”

20/20’s John Stossel wonders why so many people could put such faith in one man to change their lives, like John McCain or Barack Obama — as if one person could do all that. Central planning solves little, and self-planning solves much. Spontaneous order happens so often that it’s taken for granted.

— Russell Roberts, author of “The Price of Everything.”

Article: “John Stossel : Unappreciated Spontaneous Order - Townhall.com”Communism was adopted by more countries than Esperanto, but it also failed because planners never could anticipate the myriad wants of different people. Russians spent hours a day in lines. Millions starved.

The only times we have shortages in America are after governments intrude, like when President Nixon appointed an energy czar to regulate gas prices, and this year, when some states’ anti-“gouging” laws prevented gas stations from raising prices after storms.

Despite the repeated failure of central planning, the political class acts as if politicians can direct our lives. When there are problems, politicians will solve them. They’re going to give us prosperity and cheap health care, fix education, lower gas prices, stop global warming and make us energy “independent.”

And that’s just the beginning. A speaker at the Republic convention said, “If you want to fight childhood obesity, then John is your man.”

Who do people think these guys are?