The liberal assertion goes something like this, “If the government just increased taxes and spending, more people would be working, and everybody would be better off.” Of course, this misguided thinking is the result of a lack of understanding regarding how wealth is actually created. Consider this from Steven Horowitz:
Employing people to dig holes and fill them up again, or to build bombs that will blow up Iraqis, will certainly reduce unemployment and increase GDP, but it won’t increase wealth. The problem of economics is the problem of coordinating producers and consumers. This coordination happens when we produce what consumers want using the least valuable resources possible. That is why it is wealth-enhancing to dig a canal using earth-movers with a few drivers rather than millions of people using spoons, even though the latter would generate more jobs.
Then again, maybe we ought to listen to those advocating for the launch of a Spoon Renaissance.