A little food for thought for our local lovers of government planning.
The Most Optimistic Country in the World: For 70 years, Mohandas Gandhi's myopic vision of backward-looking socialism as a template for national advancement was accepted as revealed wisdom by a string of Indian prime ministers, starting with his acolyte, Nehru.So what happens when a free population decides to stop living how wise and compassionate leaders instruct them to behave, and start using their liberty to pursue their desires?
Forbes Magazine's Rich List last year placed India eighth in terms of the number of billionaires. The number of millionaires trebles every three years. Today, street peddlers pack cellphones.The economic evolution of Asia is shaping up to be a contest between market driven India and authoritarian driven China. For the last decade the world has focused on the explosive growth in China, aided by a communist leadership willing to command the movement of mountains (literally) to achieve economic growth. Less apparent is the maturation of India into a productive modern society. If history is any lesson, the future will favor societies that are not afraid of the liberty and mobility of their populations.
