Attempts to reform health care in the United States have always been met with profound skepticism by the average American. While in many European countries, public health care is viewed preferably or – at the least – less ominously, Americans view government intervention in developing health care programs as an affront to their freedoms. The greater the government intervention, the greater the compromise of the economic liberalism that made America become the most prosperous nation in history. Opposing government intervention in economic liberalism has become a cornerstone argument defending “traditional American values” which espouses the virtues of free enterprise and the breakdown of protectionist barriers on the macro and micro levels of the marketplace. Neoclassical economists argued that individuals were inherently rational in that their goal is always to maximize their utility and minimize their losses. To opponents of government intervention in the market,
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“The Great Depression, like most other periods of severe unemployment,” wrote American economist Milton Friedman, “was produced by government mismanagement rather than by any inherent instability of the private economy.” Friedman’s early career was defined by his support of the Keynesian principles that embraced large-scale government intervention through spending in order to stimulate a depressive economy. The Keynesian Revolution enjoyed success in the aftermath of the Great Depression and World War II where governments around the world circulated money into their economies by investing in rebuilding infrastructure and boosting employment. As the economic growth the world enjoyed from the Keynesian fiscal policies melted into an environment of stagflation of the 1970s (which involves low growth and high inflation), Friedman began to investigate the flaws in the Keynesian philosophy of dealing with economics. His epiphany set the groundwork for the development of a new branch of neoclassical economics: monetarism. The story of the rise of Keynesian economics is fascinating. From the late 19th century onwards, neoclassical economics theory dominated the mainstream discourse of macro and microeconomics. Under the assumption that humans are rationale and their decisions are rooted in efforts to maximize the utility of their purchasing power, neoclassical economics theory stressed the importance of microeconomics influence on macro level markets. Heavily reliant on mathematical models and statistics, neoclassical economics theory asserted that a free market and a focus on individualistic methodology offered reliable foundations by which to navigate and forecast maximum utility in a marketplace. Yet, neoclassical economists’ belief in the fixed behaviors of individuals desire to maximize profit in their daily life has felt increased scrutiny as the global economy has shown itself to be more |
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