Hillsdale College: The Entrepreneur As American Hero

Posted on April 4, 2005 by waynem

The Entrepreneur As American Hero

Walter E. Williams

John M. Olin Distinguished Professor of Economics

George Mason University

The following remarks were delivered on February 6, 2005, on the Hillsdale College campus, during a seminar on “Entrepreneurship and the Spirit of America,” co-sponsored by the Center for Constructive Alternatives and the Ludwig von Mises Lecture Series.

Let’s start off talking about the entrepreneur with a brief discussion of the sources of income.  Some of the rhetoric one hears gives the impression that income is somehow distributed – that there’s a dealer of dollars. Thus, one might think that the reason some Americans have more income than others is that the dollar dealer is a racist, a sexist or a multi-nationalist who deals out dollars unfairly. Alternatively, some suggest that the reason that some Americans are richer than others is because they got to the pile of money first and took an unfair share. In either case, justice requires that government take the ill-gotten gains of the few and restore them to their rightful owners – in other words, redistribute income. While no one actually describes the sources of income this way, the logic of their arguments for redistribution implies such a vision.   Complete Story.

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About waynem

As a Minnesota based photographer and artist I have been greatly influenced by the Upper Midwest. I focus my skills and energies on portraits, landscapes, cityscapes, architectural and fine art work. My best work comes from images first painted in my mind. I mull over a prospective image for weeks or months, seeing it from different angles and perspectives, then finally deciding what to capture. The result is images that deeply touch people's emotions and powerfully evoke memories and dreams. My images are used commercially by companies and organizations ranging from Financial Services firms, mom and pop Ice Cream shops and The Basilica of St Mary to communicate their shared vision and values. Book and magazine publishers have featured my images on their covers. My photographs also grace and enhance the decor of many fine homes.
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5 Responses to Hillsdale College: The Entrepreneur As American Hero

  1. bob says:
    April 4, 2005 at 1:33 pm

    I hardly think that for-profit organizations have been “beat up”…for heaven’s sake, if anything, it is the other way around. Income redistibution — yeah, the richer are getting VERY much richer, aren’t they? And who is making up the difference? You and me, the middle class. Patsy’s like you, although you are sincerely well-meaning, I am sure, are the reason they remain so powerful. I wish you would see through it. Crap like that article, which is greased and oiled for the sake of the very wealthy, does nothing but harm to the real debate, because it tries to paint the debate as an issue wherein the wealthy are under attack. Huh! Bullshit.

  2. Wayne Moran says:
    April 4, 2005 at 5:59 pm

    So Bob,
    What you are saying is I am too stupid to be small l libertarian on my own? I have to be somebody’s patsy to believe this stuff? Your arrogance is incredible.

  3. Pat, er, I mean Bob says:
    April 4, 2005 at 8:50 pm

    Oops. I apologize. That did not come out right. Please strip out all references of a personal nature. That was stupid on my part.

  4. Wayne says:
    April 4, 2005 at 9:39 pm

    So Pater Bob,
    Does that fact that some rich people are getting richer make all of what is said here invalid?
    Could it be that some of these rich people are good at what they do?
    Of course there is corruption in business, just like there is corruption in politics and everything else but that still does not prove that what he is saying is false.

  5. bob says:
    April 5, 2005 at 9:37 am

    I object to his notion that entrepreneur’s are being “beat up” by those who want to redistribute income, and redistribute it unfairly. What he is saying may be true, but he gives no proof — other than pointing a red herring at some and telling them they stink, when in fact, it may be the fish that is in his hands that smells to high heaven.

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