Of all the enemies of democracy and freedom, Friedrich August von Hayek was probably the smartest. At least, he was the most influential: the structures of today’s global economy — the European Economic and Monetary Union, central banks, “balanced budget amendments” to national constitutions, and “free” trade agreements guaranteeing capital’s future profits — are essentially based on his ideas and those of his students.

… Hayek’s first goal was to systematically keep the people, “the big lout” (in Heinrich Heine’s words), at a distance from all the social and economic decisions affecting their own lives. His second major goal was to hand the working class over to capital utterly defenseless.

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