Having an online discussion about politics and economics is really like a relationship; you don’t agree on much, and at the end of the day, someone is a fascist or just plain evil. The middle ground, wherever it might be hiding, should just retire to neglect and celibacy.
In point, people seem intractable when it comes to their views on the State or the “Galt,” which I’ll use here in place of the private sector. Modern political parlance maintains that you are either pro-government intervention because the corporate honchos are bad (leftist), or in favor of limiting the State to make way for economic prosperity (conservative). Snap. Crackle. MAGA.
The main problem arriving with these attitudes is the danger of tethering your destiny to close on one or the other. As far as I am concerned, the State is a necessary evil. We join a social pact of sorts and give up certain types of freedom in exchange for baseline security, enforcement of contracts, and infrastructure organization. Definitely not perfect, but it is there.
Corporations on the other hand provide opportunities for employment, technological development, and the chance to invest for retirement. The negatives lie in corrupt practices, cost-cutting at the expense of workers, and political influence.
Leftists and conservatives seem intent on destroying one in the name of the other. We hear endless refrains about evil corporations or the excesses of government, and the two extremes become moral competitors for the political religion of the masses. Listen to them for a few minutes and you might swear they are ready to “bend the knee” in service for the cause.
But should anyone want to? Being a fellow comrade in some Stalinist regime doesn’t sound appealing, but neither is the tepid wage-slave existence we are marching towards with mainline global capitalism. Both can abuse you, and while the latter probably won’t put a gun to your head, they can slowly poison you with preservatives and excessive sugar. Guess it’s a happy death though.
The reason Centrism exists is because the balance is necessary. There are some places where the government can safeguard our rights as individuals and workers, and others where Galt is unquestionably suited for the job. They complement and check one another, so long as we watch them closely.
Otherwise, it might be a taskmaster in a worker’s cap or a pristine yuppie in his best suit, but you still are a slave.
ECONOMIC COMMANDER 