“In order to avoid confusion caused by equivocal use of the term ‘capitalism’ by socialist intellectuals, ‘free-market capitalism’ should be clearly distinguished from ‘crony capitalism,’ from the system that has mired so many nations in corruption and backwardness. In many countries, if someone is rich, there is a very good chance that he (rarely she) holds political power or is a close relative, friend, or supporter— in a word, a ‘crony’— of those who do hold power, and that that person’s wealth came, not from being a producer of valued goods, but from enjoying the privileges that the state can confer on some at the expense of others . . . Such corrupt cronyism shouldn’t be confused with ‘free-market capitalism,’ which refers to a system of production and exchange that is based on the rules of law, on equality of rights for all, on the freedom to choose, on the freedom to trade, on the freedom to innovate, on the guiding discipline of profits and losses, and on the right to enjoy the fruits of one’s labors, of one’s savings, of one’s investments, without fearing confiscation or restriction from those who have invested, not in production of wealth, but in political power.”

(Tom G. Palmer, Ed. The Morality of Capitalism: What Professors Won’t Tell You, Ottawa, Illinois: Jameson Books, Inc., 2011, 9; from Introduction by Tom G. Palmer)

Capitalism and the Historians

Political opinion and views about historical events ever have been and always must be closely connected. Past experience is the foundation on which our beliefs about the desirability of different policies and institutions are mainly based, and our present political views inevitably affect and color our interpretation of the past. Yet, if it is too pessimistic a view that man learns nothing from history, it may well be questioned whether he always learns the truth. While the events of the past are the source of the experience of the human race, their opinions are determined not by the objective facts but by the records and interpretations to which they have access.

(Ed. F. A. Hayek, Capitalism and the Historians, Chicago, Illinois: The University of Chicago Press, 1954, 3; From Introduction, History and Politics by F. A. Hayek)