Let me start with a story. The first time I visited the Grand Canyon many years ago, I was struck not only by its natural beauty but also by a sign that said, “Please don’t feed the wild animals.” Underneath was an explanation: you shouldn’t feed them because it’s not good for them. It’s not that you’re trying to save them food; it’s just that if they get used to eating and gathering human food, then they lose their ability to live independently in the wilderness.
We should post something of this kind on Capitol Hill as well—with the difference being that the sign would read, “Please don’t feed the businesses.” That’s not because we don’t like business. Quite the opposite: we love business so much that we don’t want to create a situation where business is so dependent on a weak system, a system of subsidies, that it is unable to compete and succeed in the global marketplace.
In a competitive system, businesses make money because they are better. In a crony capitalist system, businesses make money because they have distorted the rules to their advantage or because they have found a way to divert money to their advantage.
Read Full Article »