Mises Wire

It is a marvel that imperfect, limited information available to the entrepreneur can be used to produce so much good for society. 

The state has used this virus scare to demand that politicians and bureaucrats be given near-total control over every aspect of life, including virtually every business and employer in America. Will this now be a permanent feature of American life?

Contrary to a recent headline, the US is not about to become the "epicenter" of COVID-19. In fact, the death rate of COVID-19 is lower in the US than at the same point in the timeline for many other countries we are told are comparable to the US.

Every crisis caused by the unbacked paper money system expands the power of the states over economic and social life, and unfortunately, once the state has expanded its power, it is unlikely the trend will be reversed.

There is a reason to panic. But the panic should be over how governments—who know so very little about the virus that they have decided warrants destroying the global economy—will create many new threats to health and well-being through their policies.

The costs of this government-forced economic collapse—in terms of lost lives and ruined health—are likely to be devastating.

Central bankers are panicking, and their solutions range from "buy everything that moves" to pushing interest rates even further into negative territory. Yet this doesn't seem to be helping much.

Even if the COVOID-19 virus turns out to be more severe than the skeptics give us reason to think it is, we can get through it. We cannot survive the end of the division of labor. It would be the finish of civilization as we know it.

The latest health crisis has made it clear that governments put their own interests before those of the public while hiding crucial information and imposing counterproductive regulations.

What needs to be done in such a crisis is not to attempt to steer the market to ensure it provides what is needed, but to let it free to do what it always does: match the goals of entrepreneurial producers with the needs of the populace.