Intellectuals and Self Interest

Jim Henley has a lengthy essay on how the self interest of intellectuals causes them to support managerial government. I'm reminded of a Biblical verse (Genesis 41:33):

Now therefore let Pharaoh look out a man discreet and wise, and set him over the land of Egypt.

This was, of course, followed by Pharaoh appointing the man who gave him that advice.

If you ever wondered why people who should know better don't understand the free market, you might consider the following quote:

It's impossible to make a man understand something when his livelihood depends on him not understanding it.—Upton Sinclair

On the other hand, maybe libertarianism is due to the fact that now nerds with no social skills can make a decent living outside civil service. (I am, of course, speaking for myself.)