If Socialists Understood Economics, They Wouldn't Be

Socialism Has Never And Nowhere Been At First A Working-class Movement.

From The Fact That People Are Very Different It Follows That, If We Treat Them Equally, The Result Must Be Inequality In Their Actual Position, And That The Only Way To Place Them In An Equal Position Would Be To Treat Them Differently. Equality Before The Law And Material Equality Are Therefore Not Only Different But Are In Conflict With Each Other; And We Can Achieve Either One Or The Other, But Not Both At The Same Time.

We Have Indeed At The Moment Little Cause For Pride: As A Profession We Have Made A Mess Of Things.

It Seems To Be Almost A Law Of Human Nature That It Is Easier For People To Agree On A Negative Program - On The Hatred Of An Enemy, On The Envy Of Those Better Off - Than On Any Positive Task.

The Problems Raised By A Conscious Direction Of Economic Affairs On A National Scale Inevitably Assume Even Greater Dimensions When The Same Is Attempted Internationally. The Conflict Between Planning And Freedom Cannot But Become More Serious As The Similarity Of Standards And Values Among Those Submitted To A Unitary Plan Diminishes.