The lighter side of pain
O'Rourke offers opinion on economy, politics
J.P. Welch, '11
Issue date: 3/25/09 Section: Arts & Opinion
O'Rourke, self-proclaimed "professional student of political stupidity," provided the feature lecture of the day, after Wolfe offered a brief, but well-received, introduction. His talk focused on the current global economic crisis and the efforts in Washington to curb its damage in America. His stance was markedly pro-markets.
"I root for the free-market team. Adam Smith is my star player and I've got all the memorabilia," he said with a reference to Smith's The Wealth of Nations.
More than just a fan, O'Rourke is considered an expert on Smith's work, a book that seems to have become an afterthought given the manner in which American politicians are currently attempting to cope with the economic crisis. O'Rourke made this point strikingly clear when he issued a profound warning to listeners, "When buying and selling are controlled by voting [politicians], the first things that get bought and sold are votes."
"The business of politics is always more corrupt than the business of business," he said.
He answered the glaring question about how we should deal with the crisis as any zealous follower of Adam Smith might, saying, "Let's ignore it. The cure is worse than the disease."
Paraphrasing Benjamin Franklin, he said, "He who seeks to trade freedom for security loses both." He went on to emphasize the necessity of economic freedom and to say that of all freedoms, it is the most universal.
"Economic freedom is the freedom we put into practice the most often. Freedom of speech? It's great if you've got something to say. I've checked on the Internet, nobody does. Freedom of religion? It's good if you believe in something. I've watched cable T.V. and I don't believe it. Freedom of assembly? People assemble at places like the mall, where they go to exercise their economic freedom."
He also posed another question: "Is it too soon to talk about the failed Obama presidency?" At the moment, this question may not have a real answer, but O'Rourke's account of the new President's transgressions made it seem like Barack Obama should be thinking about his own job security.
"I root for the free-market team. Adam Smith is my star player and I've got all the memorabilia," he said with a reference to Smith's The Wealth of Nations.
More than just a fan, O'Rourke is considered an expert on Smith's work, a book that seems to have become an afterthought given the manner in which American politicians are currently attempting to cope with the economic crisis. O'Rourke made this point strikingly clear when he issued a profound warning to listeners, "When buying and selling are controlled by voting [politicians], the first things that get bought and sold are votes."
"The business of politics is always more corrupt than the business of business," he said.
He answered the glaring question about how we should deal with the crisis as any zealous follower of Adam Smith might, saying, "Let's ignore it. The cure is worse than the disease."
Paraphrasing Benjamin Franklin, he said, "He who seeks to trade freedom for security loses both." He went on to emphasize the necessity of economic freedom and to say that of all freedoms, it is the most universal.
"Economic freedom is the freedom we put into practice the most often. Freedom of speech? It's great if you've got something to say. I've checked on the Internet, nobody does. Freedom of religion? It's good if you believe in something. I've watched cable T.V. and I don't believe it. Freedom of assembly? People assemble at places like the mall, where they go to exercise their economic freedom."
He also posed another question: "Is it too soon to talk about the failed Obama presidency?" At the moment, this question may not have a real answer, but O'Rourke's account of the new President's transgressions made it seem like Barack Obama should be thinking about his own job security.
Viewing Comments 1 - 4 of 4
buying essay
posted 3/16/10 @ 8:31 AM EST
Yeah, it's just one side of the coin...
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posted 3/23/10 @ 4:53 PM EST
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kede
posted 4/09/10 @ 12:00 AM EST
Good and interesting article, thanks!
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posted 5/18/10 @ 7:38 AM EST
My respect to the author - nice work, I hope it will continue.
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