Supply and Demand Over Government Control

““He stated that the operation of the law of supply and demand, with as little Governmental control as possible, would be the best solution of the problem.””

“Ludwig von Mises, a professor of the Austrian school, prescribed a first step of financing as much of the cost of a war as possible out of taxes, thereby reducing civilian consumption and expanding the purchasing power of the Army and the Navy. Since incomes would suffer and the demand for civilian goods would decline, businessmen would spontaneously converge on the growth market of armaments. Baruch had always said that voluntary conversion would be too slow. Von Mises countered that if prices were allowed to run their course, sizable profits would accrue to the firms that converted fastest. For that reason, he maintained, conversion would be lightning fast, and production would soar. Because business would be governed by market forces, no government planning apparatus would have to be built (except to ensure that the government itself knew what it wanted), and if the war were financed by savings and taxes, there would be little or no inflation.”