In 1899 a shaming campaign against the common, working man began. It started with a progressive & socialist named Velben who wrote berating the common man for engaging in consumerism & “growth of wasteful expenditures.” This at a time when people were reading by candlelight and living in totally Spartan cottages. That campaign has continued into the 21st century. President Obama, then Senator Obama, provides us with just one example here:
Progressivism has always objected to the common man peacefully exercising his preferences in his role as the sovereign consumer. However, as Classic Liberals like Rick Kelo point out the consumer decides exactly what product will be produced, in what quantity, and to what level of quality.
“I don’t eat fast food & I don’t understand why there are so many overweight Americans who do eat it every day. We might say its ‘low quality’ food”, says Rick Kelo. He continues, “But I know why it exists on every corner of every town in America. Because the common man wants that exact product. People have a fundamental human right to peacefully trade with their fellow man, whether they buy something we personally approve of or buy something we personally consider a poor choice.”
As Richard Kelo shows us, we must be very careful in criticizing people’s rational choices for our own arbitrary reasons.