#Federic Bastiat from Petition
In Petition, I like how he warns of the dangers of continuing to rely so heavily on foreign production and considers the benefits vs disadvantages of foreign production. That is what man has done through history at times, make whatever comfortability at all costs which is really a selfish way of living, but people are selfish. "We are suffering from the intolerable competition of a foreign rival" (Bastiat 2011, p. 228) I know he is alluding to lawmakers making ridiculous laws when alluding to the government making a law to shut the windows to keep the sun out to sell more candles, but I also feel he has animosity for France selling their production to foreign markets.
“The question, and we pose it formally, is whether what is you desire from France is the benefit of consumption of free of charge the alleged advantages of onerous production.” (Bastiat 2011, p 232)
I think what he was trying to warn France of was the coming challenges of having the benefit of getting everything from overseas instead of producing it within the country which the United States will start to feel the pressure from a similar problem in the coming years. Through the years big corporations have sold-out production to foreign markets more and more dwindling our middle class which is the class that shows you the strength of the economy in a country and in America 75% of people live paycheck to paycheck. Which in turn makes it harder to have a stable economy when so many people are struggling, but America has a work culture like no other which keeps it going because there are always people looking to work.
In the next reading, Government, Bastiat says that government is whoever has a monopoly on violence which I think is sort of true. I believe it’s whoever has the stick as Theodore Roosevelt would say, “Speak softly, but carry a big stick.” Government is whoever holds that stick per say. “One thing, however, remains – it is the original inclination which exists in all men to divide the lot of life into two parts, throwing the trouble upon others, and keeping the satisfaction for himself.”(Bastiat 2011, p. 92) Bastiat seemed like a cynical man in this sentence however it is true in a way, but I don’t think fully. Yes, naturally people want and need to take the work load off, especially as a business owner for example, but that doesn’t mean that the owner is trying to take advantage of people and just take the credit. I see it as helping people better than someone else would. As long as I can do a little more than mostly everyone else does, I feel like I am doing right by whoever works for me. His statement is true though. Everyone is inherently a little selfish because we have to take care of ourselves at the end of the day and I think that's what Bastiat was trying to say.
"The law perverted! And the police powers of the state perverted along with it! The law, I say, not only turned from its proper purpose but made to follow an entirely contrary purpose! The law become the weapon of every kind of greed! Instead of checking crime, the law itself guilty of the evils it is supposed to punish!”(Bastiat 2011, p. 49)
Right here Bastiat is saying the law that we intended to be the government to our society has become almost a weapon for manipulation by whomever is power hungry enough to use it. I do agree with Bastiat here, because I feel like the system relies too much on loyalty rather than even focusing on what’s right and wrong which shouldn’t that be the main goal, Justice...? When did our court systems turn into a revolving door for people with obvious drug addictions that the system just milks off of because when I was in jail that is what comprises at least 60%-75% of the people who get booked in at county jails, drug addicts. We’ve seen throughout history those in power will do whatever to stay in power so by having a system that relies on going through hoops and appeasing others is it not cultivating a pit of snakes because more often than not a man of integrity will just choose to stay out of it because what are you supposed to do against someone who will do whatever it takes to win? Especially when you are running against master manipulators and desperate people who have the need to stay in whatever position of “power” they think they have. So I agree with Bastiat again when he said the law becomes a weapon of every kind of greed. If such a person is in power, they will bend or definitely try to bend the law to their will which throughout history we have seen countless men try and do.
Personally, I think the system is too rigid when it should be more flexible because everyone is different, and that’s how we should approach law. Not with so many generalizations especially when we are dealing with actual people. Sometimes things shouldn’t be generalized. There should be a better categorization of crime and less favor to the upper 1%, but can that exist in a capitalistic society? My other opinion is that people are too negligent with things they know are wrong too, people need to speak up.
Sources:
- Bastiat Frédéric. (2011). Petition of the Manufacturers of Candles, Waxlights, Lamps, Candlelights, Street Lamps, Snuffers, Extinguishers, and the Producers of Oil, Tallow, Resin, Alcohol, and, Generally, of Everything Connected with Lighting. In The bastiat collection (pp. 227–232). essay, Ludwig von Mises Institute.
- Bastiat Frédéric. (2011). Government. In The bastiat collection (pp. 95–107). essay, Ludwig von Mises Institute.
- Bastiat Frédéric. (2011). The Law. In The bastiat collection (pp. 49–94). essay, Ludwig von Mises Institute.
Header 1