Vilfredo Pareto, combined economics and political science in his Manual of Political Economy, published in 1906. He predicted the collapse of democracies in Europe from massive and systemic corruption. For years, Americans kept government corruption under control with federal and state constitutions and a political culture of limited government, individual liberty, and self-reliance. That culture has been under attack in America since the 1960’s.
- 99 wind turbines 15 miles out in ocean are ridiculously expensive. Each one costs anywhere from $16 million to $40. All 99 cost $1,600,000,000 to $3,960,000,000 – not counting connecting cables! Not counting cost of maintenance, repairs, or taking them down and disposing of them when they wear out after 15 to 20 years.
- No clinical trials of experimental models. No evidence they work!
- Wind Turbines obviously don’t work! Otherwise they would pay for themselves, investors would use their own money to build them, and rates would go down. Instead, more wind turbines (and solar panels) mean higher bills for all but a handful of shills.
- Much power produced by wind turbines (and solar panels) is dumped and wasted.
- All wind turbines (and solar panels) need expensive back-up generators that constantly burn fossil fuels.
- Power failures and massive rate hikes are normal in Texas and California because of wind turbines and solar panels.
Click here for details.
Yet 75% of NJ Voters support 99 wind turbines 15 miles in the ocean!
Wilfredo Pareto* explained why in this 1906 parable on “Political Economy”:
“Let us suppose that in a country of thirty million inhabitants it is proposed under some pretext or other, to get each citizen to pay out one dollar** a year, and to distribute the total amount amongst thirty persons. Every one of the donors will give up one dollar** a year; every one of the thirty beneficiaries will receive one million dollars a year. The two groups will differ very greatly in their response to this situation.
“Those who hope to gain a million a year will know no rest day and night. They will win newspapers over to their interest by financial inducements and drum up support from all quarters. A discreet hand will warm the palms of needy legislators, even of ministers. In the United States there is no necessity to resort to such underhand methods: these deals are made in the open; there is an open market for votes just as there are markets in cotton and grain.
“On the other hand, the despoiled are much less active. A great deal of money is needed to launch an electoral campaign. Now there are material difficulties militating against asking each citizen to contribute a few cents** . . . [T]he individual who is threatened with losing one dollar a year—even if he is fully aware of what is afoot—will not for so small a thing forego a picnic in the country, or fall out with useful or congenial friends, or to get on the wrong side of the mayor or the Governor*!
“In these circumstances the outcome is not in doubt: the spoliators will win hands down.
*Vilfredo Pareto was a pioneer in the field of “political economics”. He lived in France and Switzerland between 1848 and 1923. This parable appears in his “Manual of Political Economy” published in 1906. Pareto also did extensive work on “income inequality”.
In 1879, Pareto observed that 80% of Italy’s wealth was controlled by 20% of its population. After further studies, Pareto found that 20% of the population controls 80% of the wealth in every society and has done so throughout history. Pareto then developed the more general “Pareto Principle”. The Pareto Principle predicts that in almost every life situation, 20% of the effort produces 80% of the results.
Pareto was highly controversial in his day. He ridiculed and refuted the basic ideas of socialism and “misguided charity” and pointed out the inherent corruption of democracy.
Pareto became even more controversial after future Italian dictator Benito Mussolini attended his lectures as a 21 year old student praised what he learned from them. In the early 1920’s, at the end of his life, Pareto wrote that European democracies had become so hopelessly corrupt that only a dictator like Mussolini could save them. Although Pareto is rejected by current academics and is rarely taught today, his studies on “political economy” nor “income inequality” were never refuted.
On the contrary, events in the United States and New Jersey during the past sixty years validate them. Here are just a few:
- Trillions spent on “Great Society”, “War on Poverty”, welfare programs since 1965. Yet the more government does to end “income inequality”, the more “income inequality we get.
- Public school teacher, administrator, and other government employee salaries, pensions benefits increase virtually every year. Yet there are already dozens of qualified applicants for every open position. Public employees already earn far more than what is earned by others not employed by the government doing similar work.
- New Jersey state and local government spending, debt, taxes tolls, and college costs increased far more than rate of inflation during almost every year since the 1960’s. Yet during each of these years, most voters said they were already paying too much for government.
- In 2016, NJ voters approved a Constitutional amendment for “bail reform” that put more criminals out on the street. Yet even at that time, most voters said they did not want more criminals let loose on the streets after being arrested.
- In 2017, 60% of NJ voters approved a ballot question to borrow $125 million for a handful of local library projects. Yet at the same time, most NJ voters did not use public libraries and complained that state taxes and debt were already too much.
- Since 2007, every New Jersey statewide ballot question allowing the state to borrow and spend more money has been approved.
**Pareto used the French terms “franc”, “centime”, and “prefect” in his original book. I changed them to the American terms “dollar”, “cent” and “Governor”.
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