“Can anyone really be saying this in the 21st century?”

The logical underpinning of statist economics are nonexistent. These doctrines were conclusively shown to be mistaken by no later than the last quarter of the previous century. But this madness has little to do with per se logic. It’s instead about power and the seeking of financial gain. The pathetic arguments of John Kenneth Galbraith and Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr are useful to “elites” who want to run things. Those who truly comprehend economic reality realize that a mostly hands off approach is the best way to increase the wealth of the citizenry. But what good is that to ego tripping and power hungry “elites”?