Hayek

I've been thumbing through my dog-eared copy of "Road to Serfdom" of late, so it was with great joy that I saw this piece in the American Thinker over the weekend: "Revisiting Hayek."

One of the most chilling observations in the article:

Keeping in mind the theory that the optimum size of government is less than 25% of GDP, consider that in 2008, US total government spending equaled $5,237.1 trillion or 36% of GDP.⁸ This would suggest that we were already spending well beyond the "optimum level" and further spending increases will decrease economic growth and prosperity. Unfortunately, in 2009, US total government spending will be equivalent to 43% of GDP!

Yup, 43%. Go read the article, and if you haven't already, go read "The Road to Serfdom." It is a wake up call and should be required reading for all high schoolers.