Crisis and Liberty: Lecture 2

The role of ideology in the growth of government is required as intellectual cover for what is done regardless of the government form (e.g. monarchy or socialism). For example, Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. played such an intellectual role.

People want to promote what they believe their interests are. Collective action has added to the growth of government. The benefits of participating in collective action are not always clear.

What is ideology? Ideology is a more or less comprehensive belief system about social relations. It is not religion, nor political philosophy, nor just social theory. Ideology has at least four dimensions: Cognitive, Affective, Programmatic, and Solidarity.

Ideological opponents in the last two hundred years have come from the Federalists political party favoring more centralization versus Jeffersonians and a later Republican party favoring decentralization, and laissez-faire economics. These interest groups have continued.

Today, it is progressivism that spawns government central planning – statism. Both major parties are statist parties now engaged in plundering citizens.

Bibliography (PDF): Mises.org/CLBib

Lecture 2 of 10 from Robert Higgs’ Crisis and Liberty: The Expansion of Government Power in American History.