Chamber Made

Welcome to your life
There's no turning back
Even while we sleep
We will find you
--Tears for Fears

President Obama's recent speech to the Chamber of Commerce provides another example of either his lack of understanding of how markets work, or of his attempts to divert attention from destructive actions of government. Or both, of course.

Jeff Tucker provides a nice critique of the 'regulation' part of the president's speech using Obama's ridiculous auto defrost refrigerator example as the centerpiece.

Toward the end of his missive, Tucker pinpointed the basic thought process that appears to occupy the minds of Big Government types. It goes like this:

Private enterprise comes up with a technology that, despite the technology's problems, can be forced upon the buying public.

Business doesn't care about the problems that customers have as long as profits keep rolling in. Status quo prevails.

Luckily, government regulators, who are constantly monitoring markets for ways to innovate and improve products, notice the problem and, thru threat of coercive force, mandate that businesses fix the problem or face loss of liberty and/or property.

Literally under the gun, industry scramble to improve the product only because government demanded it.

Thanks to central planners and wise government officials who know better than everyone else, we are all better off.

Right up there on the scale of folly. And on the scale of hubris.