Government Intervention In The Economy

The source states that if there were any kind of government intervention in the economy, the strangling of innovation and self-reliance would take away the widespread prosperity only a free-market economy can provide. This opinion directly corresponds to the ideology of capitalism, the economic aspect of classical liberalism. Capitalism supports many values that are commonly associated with modern-day western economies. One such value, laissez faire economics, professes a government free economy. Therefore, the government is not welcome in interfering with the economy. A second value that is associated with capitalism would be the idea of private property. Private property means that someone owns something, and no one can take it away from …show more content…
The speaker of the source would also be opposed to socialist values interfering with the economy and private property by taxing the rich to provide for the poor, in addition to providing any sort of social program to help those who can’t help themselves. Unrestrained capitalism, as the source advocates, should not be embraced by society. In fact, the economy should have enough government intervention that while wide-spread success is achieved, independence and innovation are not sacrificed in the process. This idea can be supported through many examples and case studies. Three ideas , however, accurately sum up the benefits of having intervention in the economy: some closure of the gap between societal income classes, innovation is still accomplished, and, most of all, the people who participate in a government regulated system will experience a widespread area of prosperity in not only the economy, but in their everyday lives as …show more content…
The best example of this is during the industrial revolution. Robert Owen decided to experiment with providing good wages, recreational time, as well as a proper housing situation to a group of people during the industrial revolution. He named the town of his experiment New Lanark. In New Lanark, Robert Owen owned the factory where everyone worked, but contrary to what other factory owners did, he paid everyone according to the work they did, allowed them to have a certain number of work hours and recreational hours, and allowed them to do activities at a recreational centre in their down time. In essence, Robert Owen, as a governing body in New Lanark, intervened in both the economy and society to provide better lives for the people of the little town. In this case, Owen intervened heavily in the economy and society of his little town. But unlike what the capitalists thought would happen, the people were very productive and were, for the most part, reliant on them for what they did and did not do. Owen’s experiment of intervention in society by a governing body provided the proof needed for the idea that independence and prosperity could be widespread if there was a