The U.S. Government and American Business

Paper Summary:

The author of this essay presents the standard libertarian position against government involvement in the business world. The premise of this paper, that the U.S. government's role should be restricted to protecting life and property of the citizens and should not have an essential role in regulating American businesses, is supported by citing the philosophy of Adam Smith from "The Wealth of Nations", by asserting that the economic prosperity that resulted from Roosevelt's domestic interventionist policies is largely myth, and that altruism, as a form of government philosophy, is unrealistic and impractical.

From the Paper:

"Ever since Adam Smith argued for laissez faire capitalism in his monumental treatise, The Wealth of Nations (1776), it has been proved time and again that the philosophy of "division of labor" and pursuit of "self interest" by the individual, results in creation of unprecedented wealth; thus improving the standard of living for everybody. This is because the division of labor results in a multiplier effect in which the society benefits tremendously from the sum of specialized knowledge of each individual. Furthermore, the freedom to pursue self interest by every individual to create wealth for oneself is the most powerful incentive imaginable and it ultimately works for the benefit of the whole society. The capitalist system, however, falters if the government interferes with the process in the form of "regulations." The degree of damage done to the economy is usually in direct proportion to the extent of the interference."

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