"It is no crime to be ignorant of economics, which is, after all, a specialized discipline and one that most people consider to be a 'dismal science.' But it is totally irresponsible to have a loud and vociferous opinion on economic subjects while remaining in this state of ignorance."
- Murray N. Rothbard, Making Economic Sense (1995)
Liberty has many enemies. Some enemies are hungry for power and know that their statism will result in poverty, dependency and destruction. I believe that many statists are ignorant of the consequences of their beliefs. I started this page to try to identify some of the common prepared statements that are parroted by a majority of those people who mindlessly support the State and its policies.
Please feel free to suggest other so-called talking points.
Side note: I found the following statement on a Scottish anti-capitalist website, Socialist Productions:
Welcome to the home page of Socialist Productions, we offer a wide range of merchandise for socialists, trade unionists and anti-capitalists. [italics mine]
The site goes on to list items such as 'MAKE CAPITALISM HISTORY' T-shirts with large SSP on back. Cost for t-shirt: £5 + postage
Also note that "without health insurance" does not mean "without health care".
40 Million Without Health Insurance? Before we conclude that our society is in desperate straits because 40 million lack health insurance, let’s look at the figure in full context and consider what it may or may not mean. - Tibor R. Machan, January 26, 2004 [Strike the Root]
The phony health-care crisis Many of the uninsured include young, well-educated, healthy people, who are unlikely to get sick. - Larry Elder, September 22, 2000 [TownHall.com]
Miscounting the Uninsured Although many of the uninsured would like coverage, a number have chosen to be self-insured. These people are not poor. - Doug Bandow, Bradley Smith, Lawrence Reed, April 15, 1994 [Mackinac Center for Public Policy]
Why does "the U.S. spend such a high percentage of its GDP on health care"? Murray Rothbard summarizes the problem with this argument in Making Economic Sense:
"Their main argument for the plan is that health care is "too costly," and that thesis rests on the fact that health care spending, over recent years, has risen considerably as a percentage of the GDP But a spending rise is scarcely the same as a cost increase; if it were, then I could easily argue that, since the percentage of GDP spent on computers has risen wildly in the past ten years, that "computer costs" are therefore excessive, and severe price controls, caps, and spending controls must be imposed promptly on consumer and business purchases of computers."
Statistics and "Gun Control" - Compiled by Richard W. Stevens [Jews For The Preservation of Firearms Ownership, Inc.]
Saving Children's Lives - with Guns A 14-year-old Marysville, Washington girl awakens in the middle of the night to discover that a strange man has crept into her bedroom... - [Center for Prevention of Hand Gun Violence.com]
Guns and Public Health: Epidemic of Violence or Pandemic of Propaganda? While the anti-gun editorials and articles discussed had the superficial form of academic discourse, the basic tenets of science and scholarship have too often been lacking. We call them "anti-gun health advocacy literature" because they are so biased and contain so many errors of fact, logic, and procedure that we can not regard them as having a legitimate claim to be treated as scholarly or scientific literature. - Don B. Kates, et. al., 1994 [Tennessee Law Review]
Is Pay a Function of Gender Bias? What NOW doesn't recognize is that the pay gap has almost nothing to do with "discrimination" but is instead a product of the gender roles of the nation's mothers and fathers. - Glenn Sacks, December 3, 2002 [ifeminists.com]
Study: Some women earn more - Childless, single fare better American women generally are paid less than men, but a new study adds a twist: That isn't the case among full-time female workers who have never married or had children and live alone. - April 4, 2002 [Arizona Republic]
Motherhood's Sacrifices Include The Earnings Gap It appears that the wage gap between men and women has little to do with sex and everything to do with children. - Sylvia Ann Hewlett, May 16, 2000 [New York Times]
Lag in Women's Pay Less Than Meets the Eye The year 1978 marked the first time that more than half of U.S. women were in the work force. So fewer women than men have the experience to command higher salaries. - Diana Furchtgott-Roth, May 11, 2000 [American Enterprise Institute]
Castro's True Wealth This year Forbes raised his ranking to the world's 7th richest head of state, with an estimated fortune of $900 million. - Humberto Fontova, May 18, 2006 [LewRockwell.com]
The Real Che Guevara Che excelled in one thing: mass murder of defenseless men. In anything like a fair fight Che was consistently routed, stomped and humiliated. - Humberto Fontova, December 1, 2005 [Capitalism Magazine]
The Inside Scoop on the Che Guevara T-Shirt "The punk's shirt was in full focus now: the hideous visage of Che Guevara -- assasin, sadist, bumbler, fool, and whimpering, sniveling, blubbering coward, yet revered by millions of imbeciles." - Humberto Fontova, November 4, 2005 [Capitalism Magazine]
Mao more lethal than Hitler, Stalin Expert says Chinese leader's policies led to death of 77 million countrymen. - Jon Dougherty, November 29, 2005 [WorldNetDaily]
Welcome to Capitalist China ...the rapid economic growth of the Chinese economy since reform began in the late '70s can prove to be an important lesson for all countries. - Jude Blanchette, November 14, 2001 [Mises]
Forgotten Famine The Murder of Millions Covered Up by the Most Influential Newspaper in America. - Gregory Bresiger, February 22, 2000 [LewRockwell.com]
