Return of the Strong Gods: Nationalism, Populism, and the Future of the West

by R.R. Reno

virtue. Friedman adopts a more practical approach, but he arrives at the same conclusion. Individuals hold a wide array of values and preferences, some of which are based on religious beliefs and moral convictions. When we enter into the marketplace, we can express those beliefs and convictions as personal preferences, which in turn can be satisfied through collaboration and exchange with others. The way toward greater freedom, then, is obvious: “The widespread use of the market reduces the strain on the social fabric by rendering conformity unnecessary with respect to any activities it encompasses.”23 In a real sense, the market is a vast and perfect system of checks and balances far more reliable than the wobbly machinery of the American Constitution. Expanding the role of free-market exchange as the principle for social organization becomes a moral imperative. “The wider the range of activities covered by the market, the fewer are the issues on which explicit political decisions are required and hence on which it is necessary to achieve agreement.”24 We are freer, less contentious, and more at peace to the degree that economics rather than politics rules. The market is a miraculous Leviathan. It seeks universal rule but never exercises authority.