The state should serve the people, not control them from "summary" of The Road to Serfdom by Friedrich August Hayek
The essential point is that the totalitarians of our times are firmly convinced that their actions are aimed at the greater good of the greater number. The professor of economics who controls prices, the planner who directs the allocation of materials, the engineer who supervises the execution of the plan, the officials who enforce the rules, are all performing the same essential task. They are all deciding what should be done and how resources and effort should be directed. The common feature of the activities of the totalitarian is that they are not directed by a single overall plan. Totalitarianism is a state in which all forces are mobilized in the service of a single goal, the rule of a single man. But their common claim is that they are doing all this in the service of the common good.
The main lesson which the true liberal must learn from the success of the socialists is that it was their courage to be Utopian which gained them the support of the intellectuals and therefore an influence on public opinion which is daily making possible what only recently seemed utterly remote. The main point of this book is the examination of the ultimate ends sought by the various types of collectivism, and the reasons why so many intellectuals are attracted by them. The fundamental question which arises in this connection is whether the plan on which the socialists insist is bound to produce a more desirable state of affairs than the one which allows individuals to make their own decisions.
The state should serve the people, not control them. The argument for the preservation of competition and for the creation of a framework within which the knowledge, skill, and initiative of individuals can be given the best scope to bear fruit. The system of private property is the most important guarantee of freedom, not only for those who own property, but scarcely less for those who do not. It is only because the control of the means of production is divided among many people acting independently that nobody has complete power over us, that we as individuals can decide what to do with ourselves.
The recognition of the insuperable limits to his knowledge ought indeed to teach the student of society a lesson of humility which should guard him against becoming an accomplice in men's fatal striving to control society — a striving which makes him not only a tyrant over his fellows, but which may well make him the destroyer of a civilization which no brain has designed but which has grown from the free efforts of millions of individuals.
Read More
Continue reading the Microbook on the Oter App. You can also listen to the highlights by choosing micro or macro audio option on the app. Download now to keep learning!
Now you can listen to your microbooks on-the-go. Download the Oter App on your mobile device and continue making progress towards your goals, no matter where you are.
