Liberalism In Cuba
Liberalism has been created and molded through many time periods, with the assistance of various great thinkers and valid viewpoints. Depending on who is asked, liberalism may have many different levels to it for them. Factors that could have shaped their view of liberalism may be their heritage and where they live or have lived. Being specific to the quote, the first section of it more referring to welfare capitalism, while the second part is largely modern liberalism. There are two distinct principles of ideology presented in the source; the first ideology given is a view that embraces more of a free-market economy, little government involvement. The second part of the source expresses more of a command economy ideology. That includes
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government involvement with no regard to what the people want (or tricking the people into thinking they have power by asking what they want, but then never actually regarding what the people want). A great thinker that could have agreed with the first statement in the quote could have been John Locke, who is best known for his thought that government actions have to be voted on by popular consent and the people have the power. The second half of the quotation talks more about a totalitarian government, which would be what Hitler stood for. Society must embrace both ideologies presented for growth to occur, but a free-market economy is what has shown itself the more realistic of the two options throughout history, time and time again. It gives more of an emphasis on the balance between government versus people. One ideological perspective is a command economy, totalitarian rule.
As the source states, “Other individuals believe that governments should implement economic policies and programs regardless of their popular appeal”. A good example of a country that is ruled via a command economy would be Cuba. It may not seem like it, but there are a few benefits to having tight government control. In Cuba people’s houses are free, and most times they are guaranteed a job because of the tight government regulation. This can be very beneficial, especially for medium sized countries like Cuba that are trying to grow their economy, because the government could bring in policies that may not seem like a good thing to the people, but may end up helping their growth in the end. A huge supporter of a command economy would have to be Hitler. It would be an understatement to say that not only did he disregard his citizens, but that he also was a totalitarian ruler. “…the individual should finally come to realize that his own ego is of no importance in comparison with the existence of the nation, that the position of the individual is conditioned solely by the interests of the nation as a whole.” This statement of Hitler’s shows exactly how much he supported the idea of totalitarian government ideas. Yet, he believed in it, and so did millions of other people. Another short quote of his is “Society’s needs come before the individual’s needs” and this is more of a “long and short” statement of his beliefs. Another supporter of a command economy was Bernhard Rust who said, “Teachers are directed to instruct their pupils… and to awaken in them a sense of their responsibility toward the community of the nation. His view was more along the lines of the propaganda that was used to enforce a command economy ideology. Both Hitler and Rust were referring to Nazi rule. Hitler had a bigger picture in mind, he did not want to be in control of only most of Western Europe, he wanted everything.
That was where he went wrong. Wanting everything included having to attack the Soviet Union, and Hitler chose a terrible time to invade which cost him a victory. The Soviet Union was very heavily militarized, and some people have described Hitler’s attempted attack as suicide. To create equilibrium in society, a free-market economy is one of the best options. It gives people breathing room, and they do not have to worry about the government on their back. As said in the source “Some individuals believe that governments should only implement economic policies and programs that have the support of public opinion”. This is more of a welfare capitalist statement, much like what John Locke believed in. A welfare state is very beneficial because it gives things like workers benefits (pensions, medical insurance, and minimum wages). John Locke stated, “The government is allowed to tax the people, but it must be with his own consent”. Though his ideas were considered radical at the time he gave valid opinions. Another great thinker that supported a free-market economy was Adam Smith. He wrote The Wealth of Nations, which spoke of how self-interest and no government involvement would lead to a superior economy; this idea was called “Invisible Hand”. Along with Adam Smith and John Locke, Milton Friedman was an avid supporter of the free-market system. He was first influenced during World War II when American withheld income tax to fund the war.
government involvement with no regard to what the people want (or tricking the people into thinking they have power by asking what they want, but then never actually regarding what the people want). A great thinker that could have agreed with the first statement in the quote could have been John Locke, who is best known for his thought that government actions have to be voted on by popular consent and the people have the power. The second half of the quotation talks more about a totalitarian government, which would be what Hitler stood for. Society must embrace both ideologies presented for growth to occur, but a free-market economy is what has shown itself the more realistic of the two options throughout history, time and time again. It gives more of an emphasis on the balance between government versus people. One ideological perspective is a command economy, totalitarian rule.
As the source states, “Other individuals believe that governments should implement economic policies and programs regardless of their popular appeal”. A good example of a country that is ruled via a command economy would be Cuba. It may not seem like it, but there are a few benefits to having tight government control. In Cuba people’s houses are free, and most times they are guaranteed a job because of the tight government regulation. This can be very beneficial, especially for medium sized countries like Cuba that are trying to grow their economy, because the government could bring in policies that may not seem like a good thing to the people, but may end up helping their growth in the end. A huge supporter of a command economy would have to be Hitler. It would be an understatement to say that not only did he disregard his citizens, but that he also was a totalitarian ruler. “…the individual should finally come to realize that his own ego is of no importance in comparison with the existence of the nation, that the position of the individual is conditioned solely by the interests of the nation as a whole.” This statement of Hitler’s shows exactly how much he supported the idea of totalitarian government ideas. Yet, he believed in it, and so did millions of other people. Another short quote of his is “Society’s needs come before the individual’s needs” and this is more of a “long and short” statement of his beliefs. Another supporter of a command economy was Bernhard Rust who said, “Teachers are directed to instruct their pupils… and to awaken in them a sense of their responsibility toward the community of the nation. His view was more along the lines of the propaganda that was used to enforce a command economy ideology. Both Hitler and Rust were referring to Nazi rule. Hitler had a bigger picture in mind, he did not want to be in control of only most of Western Europe, he wanted everything.
That was where he went wrong. Wanting everything included having to attack the Soviet Union, and Hitler chose a terrible time to invade which cost him a victory. The Soviet Union was very heavily militarized, and some people have described Hitler’s attempted attack as suicide. To create equilibrium in society, a free-market economy is one of the best options. It gives people breathing room, and they do not have to worry about the government on their back. As said in the source “Some individuals believe that governments should only implement economic policies and programs that have the support of public opinion”. This is more of a welfare capitalist statement, much like what John Locke believed in. A welfare state is very beneficial because it gives things like workers benefits (pensions, medical insurance, and minimum wages). John Locke stated, “The government is allowed to tax the people, but it must be with his own consent”. Though his ideas were considered radical at the time he gave valid opinions. Another great thinker that supported a free-market economy was Adam Smith. He wrote The Wealth of Nations, which spoke of how self-interest and no government involvement would lead to a superior economy; this idea was called “Invisible Hand”. Along with Adam Smith and John Locke, Milton Friedman was an avid supporter of the free-market system. He was first influenced during World War II when American withheld income tax to fund the war.