My Response to Economic Harmonies by Frederic Bastiat

Ramblings...

Bastiat’s Economic Harmonies has been a breath of fresh air for one who just finished reading the works of Karl Marx. The harsh society of socialism abolishes private property, family relations, classical education and religion. The socialists argue that capital causes a division of labor, which creates social classes, which creates hostility between the classes. They say that such a social order includes exploitation, evil choices and human suffering. To that I agree; and yet, I say, that is part of the natural path of free trade. With all good things there is opposition because men have agency. Agency is a natural order that brings choice and accountability. “Society is composed of men,” writes Bastiat, “and every man is a free agent. Since man is free, he can choose; since he can choose, he can err; since he can err, he can suffer.” There is growth through suffering and when institutions attempt to remove that error and suffering, they must remove agency and ultimately freedom. “If man-made institutions intervene in these matters to nullify divine law, evil nonetheless follows upon error, but it falls upon the wrong person. It strikes him whom it should not strike; it no longer serves as a warning or a lesson; it is no longer self-limiting; it is no longer destroyed by its own action; it persists, it grows worse.” So I echo Bastiat and proclaim, “bring on free trade and liberty!” Let the people choose for themselves.

The Socialist’s negative view of capitalism and competition is contested that evil choices made by men eventually correct themselves in time. Bastiat wrote, “Man’s principal social tendencies are harmonious in that, as every error leads to disillusionment and every vice to punishment, the discords tend constantly to disappear.” Bastiat did not try to cover up the fact that in a free society there would be errors. Competition does not remove hardship and suffering. The importance of struggle and effort, pain and suffering was essential for man’s progress. “On every rung of the ladder of progress,” says Bastiat, “a certain degree of suffering is and always will be man’s lot. But it teaches us also that suffering has a mission, since it would be impossible to comprehend the role of desire as a goad to our faculties if it lagged behind them, instead of rushing along ahead, as it does.” Although susceptible to evil and injustice, the best way to freedom, according to Bastiat, is undeniably free trade, which includes capitalism and competition.

Seemingly unbeknownst to the socialists, competition exists in both the natural and artificial order. Bastiat warned that competition could not be destroyed. In a free society it would be manifested in a struggle to become the best and most preferred producer, however in a socialist society it would be manifest in the direct opposite. Says Bastiat, “Men would still compete, but they would compete to excel in idleness, stupidity and improvidence.”

Whether we choose the natural social order or the artificial order there will always be competition, free exchange, evil, pain, and suffering. Bastiat enlightens the reader that there is a natural harmony that exists between the interests of man and mankind and that free trade and natural competition will be the mainspring to extend all the gifts of nature worldwide to bless humanity. In the spirit of the book of Revelations, Bastiat proclaims that “evil ends in good and hastens its coming, whereas the good can never end in evil, and therefore must eventually triumph.” Hooray for the good news projected in Economic Harmonies. I am convinced that no artificial social order can bring the happiness achieved in a free state.

Bastiat's Economic Harmonies

A summary...

The French politician and economist, Frédéric Bastiat was concerned with France’s unfortunate direction towards an artificial social order called Socialism and set out to convince his countryman to adopt the notion of liberty, the natural social order. His passion for freedom gave him an interest for free trade, which subject he examined in his book, Economic Harmonies. In argument with the socialist’s scarcity mentality, he established the belief that the interests of mankind are essentially harmonious and that the more an individual produced the more he blessed those around him. The same is true for a nation: the more a nation produced the more it blessed the world.

Among many of the socialists’ views were the beliefs that as the rich became richer, the poor became more impoverished; as population increased, food would become scarce; and as private property is theft, it should be abolished with all property becoming communal. He sums up their ideas that mankind is unable to make the right choices and that liberty must be the culprit. Underestimating the good and denying the progress made by humanity, the socialist persisted in, “seeking out evils and exaggerating them beyond measure.” Reducing liberty and free choice then became the first motive as they created, “systematic obstructionism, parliamentary bickering, street insurrections, revolutions, crises, factions, wild notions, demands advanced by all men to govern under all possible forms, new systems, as dangerous as they are absurd, which teach the people to look to the government for everything.” In simple terms, people could not do anything for themselves so the government must step in to provide.

The socialists were particularly caught up with the seemingly evil notion of self-interest. They believed that it was the root of evil in a society. The capitalist’s self-interest exploits the proletarian; self-interested greed leads to monopoly; over-population leads to scarce resources were some of their complaints. Frequently misunderstood by humanity are the two social sciences, moral and political economy. The moral realm directs our moral character and includes religious sentiment, parental affection, filial devotion, love, friendship, patriotism, charity, and all godly virtues. The remaining social science runs the economy and includes the single and cold domain of self-interest. It is because of self-interest, observes Bastiat, that the man produces and acquires, but it inevitably blesses society.

Bastiat contended that exploitation, monopoly and scarce resources are problems that arise when there is a disbelief in Providence. If men are ruled by virtuous principles then their self-interest will be in harmony with nature. He urged his people to have faith in God who knows our wants and will provide. “Let us, therefore stop worrying about the fate of mankind,” wrote Bastiat, “Thousands of centuries lie ahead of it; and in any case, without asking political economists to settle problems that are out of their field, let us confidently leave the fate of future generations in the hands of Him who will call them into existence.” With the help of God, whatever his children cannot do, He makes up for it. Bastiat historically showed that, “As capital increases, the capitalists’ absolute share in the total production increases and their relative share decreases. On the other hand, the workers’ share increases both relatively and absolutely.” History has shown that in a free society, Bastiat is right.