Government During A Crisis

A summary by Wendy McElroy:

1. A crisis interrupts the flow of necessities. The government assures people that it can supply their needs. After all, that’s what government is for.

2. It fails.

3. People provide for themselves. The private sector demonstrates that it can do what the public sector cannot. This not only slaps authority in the face, but also constitutes an argument against the need for government.

4. To mask their own incompetence and to deflect public anger, government blames shortages and other hardships on those who “hoard” or otherwise disregard government rules.

5. Government re-establishes its own necessity in the public mind by becoming the authority capable of cracking down on anti-social criminals. Government also establishes an air of competence because cracking down is something it does well.