No More Do-overs!
by Dr. Doug Cardell
In modern history, there have been more than a hundred experiments with controlled economies, fascism, socialism, communism, and others. Every one has failed; in modern times, none has lasted more than 80 years. Almost all the longer-lasting ones have only lasted that long by severely repressing the population. Every time one fails, the ideological theorists justify the failure by saying, "They just didn't do it quite right, but it'll work next time." Albert Einstein is quoted as saying, "You can never solve a problem on the level on which it was created. Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." Those advocating centrally planned economies fail on both of Einstein's principles. They created the problem by being immersed in their ideological theories, for which there is no evidence to indicate a likelihood of success, and from within their bubble, they try to solve the problems exhibited by the system from that same level. Furthermore, after hundreds of failures, they continue to pursue the insanity that next time it will work. If you think of the Nordic countries as a counter-example, please read my article, "Democratic Socialism?" Unsurprisingly, ideologues refuse to give up their disproved beliefs; that's the nature of an ideologue. What is surprising is that a reasonably large number of well-meaning people continue to support their ongoing efforts despite all the evidence of failure. How are their supporters convinced? The answer lies in the wording of the ideologues' position. Foremost in their presentations is that they fight for the notion that all people should be equal. That sounds noble, but it is inherently incorrect. All people are not equal, nor should they be. Before you call for me to be beheaded, let me explain. All people should be treated equally in the eyes of the law and the mores of society. However, all people are not equal. There are inborn differences, height, beauty, physical characteristics, suitability for certain activities, intelligence, certain emotional predispositions, and much more. Early developmental differences include formal and informal education, physical training, developed interests like sports and hobbies, and character development. These are differences that are essential to a happy and productive society. Let's take a look at a few exceptional people in their fields; Einstein, as mentioned above, Paul McCartney, Marie Curie, Tom Brady, Martin Luther King, Pablo Picasso, Maya Angelou, Elon Musk, Julia Roberts, Dwight Eisenhower, J.K. Rowling, Steven Spielberg, Agatha Christie, and Walt Disney. These folks couldn't be more different; of course, they should all be equal in the eyes of the law and society, but would we want them to be equal? Would you consider choosing Julia Roberts to replace Eisenhower as Supreme Commander of NATO in WWII? How about a pop/rock single written, performed, and sung by Einstein? How about a new murder mystery written by Martin Luther King? Maybe you'd like to see a major motion picture starring Tom Brady and Maya Angelou, written by Pablo Picasso and directed by Elon Musk. Do you imagine Paul McCartney making profound scientific discoveries or Marie Curie creating loveable cartoon characters? All people being equal is the ideology of the central planning advocates meaning no one can be better at anything than anyone else. The differences—the inequality—between people are the driving force of human progress. Should Sony Pictures be forced to pay Julia Roberts and Albert Einstein the same salary for performing in a film in the name of fairness? That would be terribly unfair to Julia Roberts, who has spent decades perfecting her craft. Should the Arizona Cardinals be forced to pay Tom Brady and Pablo Picasso the same salary as quarterbacks on their football team and disregard the years of effort Brady invested? This logical flaw is the core reason why centrally planned economies always fail. The ideologues proposing these schemes refuse to acknowledge one stubborn fact; no two people are the same and therefore not equal. They must have equal rights, legally and societally. Neither the law nor societal systems like education, public accommodations, public services, and public access must be able to discriminate between them. Do they have equal value? As people, of course, but to society, who knows? That's for the community to decide. Is Paul McCartney more valuable to society than Albert Einstein? Some would cite Einstein's contribution to science, while others speak of the profound effect of McCartney's music in touching their heart. Is Julia Roberts more valuable than Dwight Eisenhower? Some would describe the personal joy they had in Roberts' performances others would say Eisenhower's leadership in WWII was more critical. Only society as a whole can assign value to skills and contributions. Polls asking folks to name the people in the public sphere they admire most or who most affected their lives proves this. Those listed as most respected or having the most significant effect on their lives by many include CEOs, actors, politicians, political wives, singers, jurists, gamers, comedians, government figures, journalists, religious leaders, athletes, talk show hosts, activists, musicians, scientists, philanthropists, inventors, entrepreneurs, leaders of NGOs, models, film/TV directors-producers, writers, and royalty. Since society doesn't uniformly value varied contributions, it is essential to have variety which requires inequality. Central planners apply this idea of equality to children by giving everyone 'participation trophies' and pushing to eliminate AP classes or giving only pass-fail grades. There is nothing wrong with participation trophies; showing up is crucial to success, but rewarding outstanding performance is equally important. The hurt feelings some experience is more than outweighed by the good done in helping children find their best path. People and society benefit if individuals pursue avenues they are particularly good at. Children can only learn what they do best by comparing themselves with others. The same is true of schoolwork. Students benefit by seeing that they get better grades in science than art or succeed more in music class than mathematics. Children robbed of these opportunities are far more likely to make poor career choices and limit their contributions to society. Even if we could make everyone equal, should we? Try and imagine what that would mean. Equal means identical. Everyone has the same attributes and abilities. Since no one could be better looking than anyone else, we would all have to look alike; since genders couldn't be different, we would all have to be one gender. It would be a world of clones. Since no one could specialize and develop superior talent in one area, we would devolve to the lowest common denominator. Human progress would slow to a crawl or cease. The central aim of controlled economies like fascism, socialism, and communism is fatally flawed. These economies can ever succeed not just for economic reasons, as touched on in my article "Economic Error" but because they are based on theories that have been proven to fail repeatedly. Enough is enough; the tired excuse that it wasn't done right this last try is insufficient. Controlled economies don't work; they will never work; doing it again is insane. It's time to stop this nonsense and tell these would-be dictators that we know what is best for us and won't give them more do-overs.
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