Recessions are scary, and the Left always rushes to “fix” them with government meddling. But what if their fixes are just making things worse?
- Recessions aren’t predictable cycles.
- Government intervention can be harmful.
- Focus on fundamentals like property rights.
The Myth of the “Business Cycle”
For decades, eggheads have been obsessed with the idea that the economy moves in predictable “cycles.” They see booms and busts as inevitable, like the changing of seasons. Tyler Goodspeed, a former White House advisor and current bigwig at ExxonMobil, throws a wrench in this whole idea.
Goodspeed’s new book, Recession: The Real Reasons Economies Shrink and What to Do About It, argues that recessions aren’t some natural phenomenon. Instead, he says they’re usually caused by unexpected shocks – things like wars, natural disasters, or, yes, even government blunders.
Government “Help” That Hurts
Goodspeed points to history, looking at recessions in Britain and America going all the way back to the 1700s. He finds little evidence of these neat, predictable cycles. What he does find is that many recessions are triggered or worsened by – you guessed it – government intervention.
Think about it: the Left’s knee-jerk reaction to every economic hiccup is to throw money at the problem. But what if that money is misspent? What if it distorts the market, creating new problems that prolong the downturn? Goodspeed suggests that’s often the case. He likens our obsession with finding patterns in the economy to a hypochondriac constantly searching for illnesses.
Back to Basics: Freedom Works
So, what’s the alternative? Goodspeed says we need to focus on the fundamentals: protecting property rights, upholding the rule of law, and keeping government out of the way as much as possible. In other words, the conservative principles that have always been the bedrock of a strong economy.
He acknowledges that this might be a tough pill for some to swallow. People want to believe that the government can solve every problem. But sometimes, the best thing the government can do is nothing. Goodspeed calls for “palliative care” instead of “prophylactic surgery.” Sensible words.
The Left’s Narratives: A False Hope?
The author of the original piece makes an important point: Goodspeed’s most powerful argument may be about the narratives we tell ourselves. Liberals love the idea that recessions are a kind of “cleansing,” wiping away the “sins” of the previous boom. This justifies their interventionist policies.
But Goodspeed argues that this is a dangerous way of thinking. It blinds us to the real causes of recessions and leads us to make bad decisions. He hopes the more we focus on basics, “the greater the likelihood of sustained economic expansions.”
Is he right? If so, we need to rethink everything we know about economic policy. Is our desire for government control causing more harm than good?
