In Frederic Bastiat's, The Law, Bastiat makes some very interesting statements and points reflecting on the way government raises funds through “legalized plunder”. After reading The Law, I would have to agree with a lot of the points Bastiat makes regarding not only “legalized plunder” but also regarding the contents in the chapters The Complete Perversion of the Law.
I found it particularly interesting when Bastiat states, “When, then, does plunder stop? It stops when it becomes more painful and more dangerous than labor.” Politicians use legalized plunder in many instances to gain wealth because of how easy and how rewarding it is. Why work for your wealth when it is easier to take someone else’s? It can be easy to blame the politicians for being greedy, but in my opinion, the blame should be directed towards the system that enables the politicians to do such things.In addition to this, when the politicians are the same ones making the laws that allow for “legalized plunder”, it is near impossible to stop them from engaging in plunder. In the chapter Victims of Lawful Plunder, Bastiat discusses how when the classes that are being plundered begin to grow tired of being plundered, and they go into the making of the laws after a revolution, that they then will begin the same process all over again through universal plunder. The legalized plundering of the people will be a continuant in society by lawmakers when they have the power to do so, as long as it is less painful than labor.
I also found the chapter “The Complete Preservation of the Law” very intriguing. Bastiat discusses how the law goes above and beyond its original purpose. Bastiat states “And when it has exceeded its proper functions, it has not done so merely in some inconsequential and debate matters. The law has gone further than this; it has acted in direct opposition to its own purpose.” The law has become a tool to exploit others and throw people in jail, rather than protect the citizens in which helped elect the officials that put the laws into place.
Overall, I agree with a good amount of topic that Bastiat discusses in The Law. I think that he makes some good points discussing “legalized plunder” and the corruption in politics, as well as how the law has changed from being for the people to against the people, in some ways taking away their rights.
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