Socialists and the wall

Certain newspaper columnists warn of proposed Democratic socialist policies, with nary a word about Republican socialist policies. Such warnings amount to little more than pot calling kettle black. The U.S. has a mixed socialist-capitalist economy with national defense, police and fire protection, sewage and sanitation, and highways provided by government while food, clothing, energy and housing are produced by private firms. Capitalism is founded on private property rights and allows the free movement of capital and labor toward their highest and best use. Moreover, capitalism recognizes that ultimate end of production is to serve consumers regardless of their preferences.

Recent tariffs imposed on U.S. imports have precipitated a trade war and will impose costs on producers as well as consumers. Evidently, private individuals are incapable of choosing correctly so government experts are called in to ride to our rescue as they pick winners (steel) and losers (farmers and consumers) for us.

Markets work best when workers and capital owners are free to move away from low valued uses of their time and money toward higher valued uses. Great migrations of people from Europe to the U.S., of African Americans from the South to the North, and of people from the industrial Northeast to the Sunbelt occurred as people sought to enhance their own interests and are consistent with the capitalist experiment. Even assuming that there are merits to securing U.S. borders, building a wall and limiting immigration belong to the socialist, not the capitalist.

WILLIAM WEBER, Jackson