It is impossible to introduce into society a greater change and a greater evil than this: the conversion of the law into an instrument of plunder.
From The Law, 1860
It is impossible to introduce into society a greater change and a greater evil than this: the conversion of the law into an instrument of plunder.
From The Law, 1860
A fancy saying, but I can think of other evils that are greater (slavery easily off the top) that the law can facilitate.
Bastiat would have considered slavery plunder since it uses the law to take another’s labor.
“Man can live and satisfy his wants only by ceaseless labor; by the ceaseless application of his faculties to natural resources. This process is the origin of property.
But it is also true that a man may live and satisfy his wants by seizing and consuming the products of the labor of others. This process is the origin of plunder.
Now since man is naturally inclined to avoid pain — and since labor is pain in itself — it follows that men will resort to plunder whenever plunder is easier than work. History shows this quite clearly. And under these conditions, neither religion nor morality can stop it.
When, then, does plunder stop? It stops when it becomes more painful and more dangerous than labor.”
That’s much more eloquent than the response I was considering, Mr. Shaw. I was just going to point out that the word “plunder” is inclusive enough to contain slavery.
Hyar
Typo/return error.
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I was quoting Bastiat:
http://bastiat.org/en/the_law.html#SECTION_G002
I was wondering why Dave might be quoting him. Bastiat thought that there were two sources of plunder, the first being the result of stupid greed, which is probably Dave’s take on financial regulation and efforts to prop up too big to fail institutions.
The other basis for plunder was false philanthropy, which may be well-motivated, but it becomes larger and larger because there can be no limit to good intentions so long as the government believes itself infallible, the law omnipotent and the people inert. That would be one explanation of what’s going on in England, which I think I heard a liberal/socialist on Fareed Zakaria’s show express a few hours ago.
I thought that was an odd response.