[From “That Which Is Seen, and That Which Is Not Seen,” included in The Bastiat Collection .] “Neither industry in general, nor the sum total of national labor, is affected, whether windows are broken or not.” Have you ever witnessed the anger of the good shopkeeper, James B., when his careless son happened to break a square of glass? If you have
Ought the state to support the arts? There is certainly much to be said on both sides of this question. It may be said, in favor of the system of voting supplies for this purpose, that the arts enlarge, elevate, and harmonize the soul of a nation; that they divert it from too great an absorption in material occupations; encourage in it a love for
Petition of the Manufacturers of Candles, Waxlights, Lamps, Candlelights, Street Lamps, Snuffers, Extinguishers, and the Producers of Oil, Tallow, Resin, Alcohol, and, Generally, of Everything Connected with Lighting To the Members of the Chamber of Deputies. Gentlemen: You are on the right road. You reject abstract theories, and have little
I have said that when, unfortunately, one has regard to the interest of the producer — and not to that of the consumer — it is impossible to avoid running counter to the general interest, because the demand of the producer as such is only for efforts, wants, and obstacles. I find a remarkable illustration of this in a Bordeaux newspaper. Mr.
[This introduction to Bastiat’s Economic Sophisms (1845) is excerpted from The Bastiat Collection (2011).] My design in this little volume is to refute some of the arguments that are urged against the freedom of trade. I do not propose to engage in a contest with the protectionists; but rather to instill a principle into the minds of those who
[ The Bastiat Collection ] Which is best for man and for society, abundance or scarcity? What! you exclaim, can that be a question? Has anyone ever asserted, or is it possible to maintain, that at the foundation of human well-being? Yes, this has been asserted, and is maintained every day; and I do not hesitate to affirm that the theory of
[Included in The Bastiat Collection (2011), this article appeared in Economic Sophisms (1845).] The obstacle mistaken for the cause — scarcity mistaken for abundance — this is the same fallacy under another aspect; and it is well to study it in all its phases. Man is originally destitute of everything. Between this destitution and the
[Included in The Bastiat Collection (2011), this article appeared in Economic Sophisms (1845).] We have just seen that between our wants and the satisfaction of these wants, obstacles are interposed. We succeed in overcoming these obstacles, or in diminishing their force, by the employment of our faculties. We may say, in a general way, that
[Included in The Bastiat Collection (2011), this article appeared in Economic Sophisms (1845).] We have here, again, the same fallacy. We demand that foreign products should be taxed to neutralize the effect of the taxes that weigh upon our national products. The object, then, still is to equalize the conditions of production. We have only a
[Included in The Bastiat Collection (2011), this article appeared in Economic Sophisms (1845).] Our adversaries have adopted tactics that are rather embarrassing. Do we establish our doctrine? They admit it with the greatest possible respect. Do we attack their principle? They abandon it with the best grace in the world. They demand only one thing
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The Mises Institute is a non-profit organization that exists to promote teaching and research in the Austrian School of economics, individual freedom, honest history, and international peace, in the tradition of Ludwig von Mises and Murray N. Rothbard.
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