The Road to Serfdom was written by Fredrick Hayek, is based on Hayek's beliefs of free-market economies, and follows the Austrian School of Economics.
Hayek mentions de Tocqueville a political thinker, and how Tocqueville believes that Democracy and Socialism are opposites. While I do believe that the two can coexist, Tocqueville did make me question the collectivist values of Socialism. And that in an authoritative socialist country, people do lose their individuality and ‘makes each man a mere agent, a mere number,” however; if socialism ad democracy can coexist then the individualistic fundamentals can stay in place.
Hayek also brings up how dictators rise to power, and how a country becomes totalitarian. His first point, uneducated groups are targeted over-educated groups, does remind me of the basis of mobocracy. While I believe in today's society mobocracy is not a reason for our electoral college system and other safeguards, it nonetheless, does exist. Even in our most recent elections, we see how groups become moblike in support of their contender. It can also be seen how politicians target lower class and uneducated groups for support.
Hayek also mentions monopolies in Germany around 1878. He mentions how the policies of Germany, organized labor and capital, suppressed competition within the country. I find he mentions only one end of how the monopolies were forced. At the same time as Germany, the U.S. was also experiences the vast power of monopolies. The 1870s to the 1900s was a time when monopolies ran the U.S. ridding the country of competition. Unlike Germany, this was caused by the lack of policies that would have stopped the Robber Barons from controlling the country and making thousandw of businesses close.
Finally, to speak of Hayek's cartoon depiction of Germany. After the planners fail to come to a compromise and the people grow weary, the least educated members form a party. I believe that this type of event occurs often in today's society when politicians are elected by how “loud” they are rather than the content of what they say. It's because of the publicity they create that they can get a large backing and gain power. The target of the least educated leader, is his peers, those who are not well versed but will believe what their fellow man believes. The leader then stays in power due to confusion, national unity, and I believe fear. It was the fear in Germany that lead to the strong-willed obedience seen among citizens. Once the now dictator has been in power, you can see the effects of the totalitarian society. Germany became classless whereas Tocqueville mentions, everyone has lost individuality. Finally, I believe that Hayek mentions the most important weapon of a dictator: Propaganda. Propaganda is the biggest weapon of the “least” educated, the ability for the dictator to spread lies leads to a universal belief. No matter how false the information, if it can become widely enough believed in a society, it may as well be the truth.
Overall, I do agree with the views of Hayek, he does offer a new perspective that is much more personal than my own and is able to clearly convey the steps it took for the competition of Germany to fail, and for a dictatorship to grow.
[Image Source}Propaganda
