Chapter 14, Material, Conditions and Ideal Ends Summary and Analysis

Most claims for economic reconstruction are economic in nature. They call for liberty, equality, and security in the new structure of monopolies. The present generation is impatient and unwilling to listen to economic arguments. They feel that if they submit to the suppression of individual freedom then they are helping to build something. They don't comprehend that if they suppress the market they then give power to a group of governing authorities. The entire society is subordinated to a certain group. This situation occurs during war. To them, planning is a way to avoid unemployment. A market economy adjusts for changes in demand. Unemployment results in shifts of labor to other industries. In socialism, this has to be accomplished by coercion. The only way to raise wages for everyone is through...