When trying to educate people about the superiority of free enterprise over statism, I generally show them long-run data comparing market-oriented jurisdictions with those that have state-driven economies. Here are some of my favorite examples.
- North Korea vs. South Korea
- Cuba vs. Chile
- Ukraine vs. Poland
- Hong Kong vs. Argentina
- Singapore vs. Jamaica
It’s my hope that when readers look at these comparisons, they will recognize the value of economic freedom because it is very obvious that ordinary people become far more prosperous when government is small.
But there’s also another way of determining which approach is superior. Just look and see what happens when people are allowed to vote with their feet. Or, just as important, look at places where people are not allowed to vote with their feet.
The Berlin Wall and the Iron Curtain, for instance, existed to prevent people from escaping the horror of Soviet communism. Likewise, people in North Korea and Cuba don’t have the freedom to emigrate.
Totalitarian governments realize that their citizens would escape en masse if they had the chance.
In free countries, by contrast, there’s no need to imprison people.
And that’s why this image is not only funny, but also a good summary of population shifts around the world.
I’ll definitely have to add this to my collection of libertarian humor.
To be sure, not everybody who moves from a statist hellhole to a prosperous capitalist society is motivated by an appreciation for liberty. They may simply want a better life and have no idea that national prosperity is a function of economic liberty.
And they may not even want to earn a better life. They may simply want to get on the gravy train of government handouts (which is why I’m not a fan of America’s dependency-inducing refugee program).
But I’m digressing. The simple moral of today’s story is that decent societies don’t have to imprison their citizens. That only happens in place where government is not only big, but also evil.
P.S. Unlike some libertarians, I like borders.
P.P.S. People also vote with their feet inside nations, and the lesson to be learned is that smaller governments attract more people.
