Thật sự nguy hiểm

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trích dẫn hôm nay… is from page 72 of David Mamet’s new 2022 book, Recessional: The Death of Free Speech and the Cost of a Free Lunch:

DBx: Government officials who use their power to override (gạt ra một bên, không thèm đếm xỉa đến) market processes (quá trình của thị trường) in order to impose their own economic plans do not spend their own money. Further, these officials win power (giành được quyền lực) by presenting themselves as being singularly inspired and blessed with extraordinary vision (tầm nhìn phi thường). The stated purpose used to justify (biện minh) any of their schemes (kế hoạch) is to replace (thay thế) with a ‘rational’ or ‘common-good’ plan what they portray as mindless or chaotic (hỗn loạn) or myopic (thiển cận) or greed-fueled private actions.

Failure of any such scheme – whether that scheme be full-on socialism or industrial policy (chính sách công nghiệp) or some other species of economic arrogance (ngạo mạn) – to live up to its hype (khoa trương, thổi phồng), because it costs the planners nothing personally, is attributed to subversion (sự thoái hóa, biến chất), or to insufficient vigor in pursuing the plan, or to weather – to anything other than any fault in the plan itself. How, after all, could the plan be faulty given that it is the product of the minds of uniquely public-spirited geniuses? So the state doubles-down on pursuit of the plan. In doing so, it identifies enemies of the plan – speculators, financiers, billionaires, “the elite,” the bourgeoisie, foreigners, long-dead economists, or often (because of its rigor, my favorite!) “greed.”

As evidenced by the short and not-so-sweet run of CNN-Plus, no such folly (sự điên rồ, hành động dại dột, điều nực cười) occurs when economic processes are guided by markets, with individuals and firms investing their own money, and with consumers – also spending their own money – being free to say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ as they choose.

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