Oh Dear: David Hume, Again, And Giving Politicians Keys to Credit

After I wrote an entire book review, come essay, castigating the philosophy of the evil, though mild-mannered Scotsman, David Hume, Café Hayek quotes him this morning on economics with words I have to agree with. From his 1742 essay “Of Public Credit,”:

The practice, therefore, of contracting debt will almost infallibly be abused, in every government.  It would scarcely be more imprudent to give a prodigal son a credit in every banker’s shop in London, than to impower a statesman to draw bills, in this manner, upon posterity.

No truer words were written; Mr Hume got it right, once at least. The proof is the economies of Europe and the US, and not forgetting in New Zealand our current government with still a bigger dollar spend than Michael Cullen's, continues to borrow hundreds of millions every week. Across almost three centuries it appears our politicians have learned little: I wonder if we will, ever. 

Indeed, here's a question: haven't the only times the West has leaped ahead, been those times when revolutions, either philosophical, industrial or technological, pushed for some short glorious periods the influence of politicians back - and their racking up of debt to enslave the future to them - so free men were given the oxygen to do what markets allow them to do best: innovate and increase the living standards of all of us?