Who Hates Free Markets

From Zanecorpwiki

Yet another useless anecdote of straw man tactics... 98.9, "The Big Talker", 22:20 2009-12-23: "A solid 35% of Americans hate capitalism, they hate the free market," then "Hugo Chavez wants to open a socialist department store, and say what you want, but the fact is that there's no difference between that and the [Democratic leadership]."^{[notes 1]}

The claim is that one out of three Americans hates the free market? I don't think one out of three Russian's hate the free market. I'm socially pretty liberal. All my friends and most of my family--even the old ones as far as I know--support health care and progressive taxes. So I should be smack in the middle of "free market hating" country, and yet I don't know one person that even dislikes the free market. In fact, everyone I know is a fan of the free market.

I think the mistake we sometimes make is to dismiss ludicrous claims out of hand; and I'm talking about the left, right, everyone. It's something people do. Really, we should engage the claim. "35% of Americans hate the free market" is an obviously false claim to anyone living in any kind of cosmopolitan setting. You have to be pretty well holed up in a strangely insular community, or else walled in behind some serious prejudice to believe that one in three Americans "hates the free market." If you know someone that doesn't think that's a ludicrous claim, then please help them.

I'm not saying "convert them." It's fine to like the show and enjoy the "ra-ra" rhetoric, but we really should require that everyone in a civil society recognize insanely overblown hyperbole when they hear it. It's as easy as saying, "I voted for Obama, do you think I 'hate free markets'?" Or maybe you voted for McCain, do you know anyone that voted for Obama? And do you know anyone that "hates the free market?" It doesn't have to be a good friend, but think of "that guy at work". You may disagree with his politics, but do you really think he's a Stalin style communist?

Notes

1. ↑ I'm paraphrasing as I just heard it on the radio. In the second part, he originally names some leading Democrats, but I don't remember the names.