Today’s Relevance of Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations

Originally published in The Independent Review

The Scottish economist and moral philosopher’s landmark treatise, The Wealth of Nations (1776), is relevant today not only because it makes a still pertinent and compelling case for free trade, low taxes, and the “invisible hand” of the marketplace. It also resonates by calling out, with acumen and eloquence, the “folly and presumption” of any persons or group who believes themselves fit to direct the affairs of other people.

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