One of my common retorts to the idea that ‘well Abundance is just repackaged libertarianism’ is that this construction entirely neglects the dimension of state capacity, which your book does such a thorough job of covering. But, as you point out here, this also showcases how the Trump/Vance vision of Bog Government Conservatism also represents a massive shift away from Reaganism for a similar reason: there is, though often inexplicitly, an assumption for the need for a muscular state. Even if they aren’t acknowledging it.
I think Ohio is really blowing it (pun intended) compared to Texas in terms of wind power and of course solar! But Texas will grow because it has jobs and cheap energy but Ohio will still be a rust belt state that will continue to lose people 🤔
This is the fatal conceit of modern politics: the belief that prosperity is built by expanding the state rather than by freeing the people who create wealth.
America didn't become prosperous because politicians directed investment. It became prosperous because millions of individuals were free to build, save, invest, and innovate without waiting for permission from the state.
Governments do not harness ingenuity—they harness taxes. Every dollar spent on grand political projects is a dollar first taken from productive people through taxation, borrowing, or inflation.
If we want more housing, cheaper energy, and better infrastructure, the answer is not a bigger public sector. It is a smaller one that gets out of the way of the entrepreneurs, builders, and investors who create wealth instead of redistributing it to politically connected interests.
One of my common retorts to the idea that ‘well Abundance is just repackaged libertarianism’ is that this construction entirely neglects the dimension of state capacity, which your book does such a thorough job of covering. But, as you point out here, this also showcases how the Trump/Vance vision of Bog Government Conservatism also represents a massive shift away from Reaganism for a similar reason: there is, though often inexplicitly, an assumption for the need for a muscular state. Even if they aren’t acknowledging it.
I think Ohio is really blowing it (pun intended) compared to Texas in terms of wind power and of course solar! But Texas will grow because it has jobs and cheap energy but Ohio will still be a rust belt state that will continue to lose people 🤔
IF ONLY Vance would embrace abundance, that might make post-Trump Republicans actually tolerable.
Abundance = progress = a better society
If Republicans get on board with this kind of agenda they might be in serious danger of getting my vote back!
This is the fatal conceit of modern politics: the belief that prosperity is built by expanding the state rather than by freeing the people who create wealth.
America didn't become prosperous because politicians directed investment. It became prosperous because millions of individuals were free to build, save, invest, and innovate without waiting for permission from the state.
Governments do not harness ingenuity—they harness taxes. Every dollar spent on grand political projects is a dollar first taken from productive people through taxation, borrowing, or inflation.
If we want more housing, cheaper energy, and better infrastructure, the answer is not a bigger public sector. It is a smaller one that gets out of the way of the entrepreneurs, builders, and investors who create wealth instead of redistributing it to politically connected interests.