the Arabs, the Mongols, and the Tartars, not to mention the Spanish in America, the English in India, the French in Africa, the Russians in Asia, etc., etc.
But at least in civilized nations, the men who produce the wealth have become sufficiently numerous and strong to defend it. Is this to say that they
[print edition page 110]
are no longer dispossessed? Not at all; they are just as dispossessed as ever and, what is more, they mutually dispossess each other.
Only the thing which promotes it has changed; it is no longer by force but by fraud that public wealth can be seized.
In order to steal from the public, it is first necessary to deceive them. To deceive them it is necessary to persuade them that they are being robbed for their own good; it is to make them accept imaginary services and often worse in exchange for their possessions. This gives rise to sophistry. Theocratic sophistry, economic sophistry, political sophistry, and financial sophistry. Therefore, ever since force has been held in check, sophistry has been not only a source of harm, it has been the very essence of harm. It must in its turn be held in check. And to do this the public must become cleverer than the clever, just as it has become stronger than the strong.
Good public, it is with this last thought in mind that I am addressing this first essay to you, although the preface has been strangely transposed and the dedication is somewhat belated.16,17
Mugron, 2 November 1845
END OF THE FIRST PART
[print edition page 111]
Economic Sophisms Second Series 1
What industry asks of government is as modest as the plea of Diogenes to Alexander: “Get out of my sunlight.”
(Bentham)2
Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.
Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».
Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.
Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.
