]]]]]]]]]]]     THE DIFFERENT FORMS OF GOVERNMENT    [[[[[[[[[[[ 
                                                       12/2/1988
From John Galt, Dreams Come Due (NY: Simon and Schuster, 1986)
                           [pp. 145-6]
            [Kindly uploaded by Freeman 10602PANC]

   In  the  interest  of  explaining  the  way  various  forms of
government function  politically and  economically, the following
examples (based on  an old European joke)  are presented for your
edification:

Socialism     You have two  cows; there is  an election.  The new
              government takes one of your cows through taxes and
              gives  it  to your  neighbor.   The  neighbor knows
              nothing of livestock so his new cow dies.

Communism     You have two cows; there  is a revolution.  The new
              government confiscates both your cows and gives you
              a  small portion  of the  milk they  produce.  Both
              cows soon  die, but the  government is  able to get
              powdered   milk   on  credit   from   a  democratic
              government.

Fascism       You have two  cows; there is  a military coup.  The
              new government confiscates both your cows and sells
              you part of the milk for ration coupons.

Nazism        You have two cows;  there is an assassination.  The
              new  government  confiscates  both  your  cows  and
              shoots you.

New Dealism   You have two cows; there  is a depression caused by
              the  government,  and then  an  election.   The new
              government buys your cows with currency it has just
              printed.   It   then  shoots  one   cow,  hires  an
              unemployed person to milk the other cow, and throws
              the milk away in order to help raise milk prices.

Democracy     You have two  cows; there is a  surplus of milk and
              prices are  low.  You  appeal to  the government to
              subsidize  your  milk  for   the  ``good''  of  the
              country.   The  government   enacts  your  program,
              raises taxes on its citizens, and buys your milk at
              inflated prices.  It then stores the milk in rented
              warehouses  until  it  spoils or  they  can  find a
              communist government to  buy it on  credit and at a
              loss.

Capitalism    You  have two  cows.  You  sell one  cow and  buy a
              bull.  There is freedom and prosperity.

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