An example of acedamic intellengence from the Cato Institute

'You very likely own stolen goods. The gas in your car, the circuits in your cell phone, the diamond in your ring, the chemicals in your lipstick or shaving cream — even the plastic in your computer may be the product of theft. Americans buy huge quantities of goods every day that are literally stolen from some of the world’s poorest people. These thefts are permitted — indeed encouraged — by an archaic rule of international trade that violates the most fundamental rule of capitalism: to protect property rights." [http://www.cato-unbound.org/2008/05/12/leif-wenar/we-all-own-stolen-goods/]


I find it troubling that the author and commentators got the whole subject wrong. They all seem intelligent yet no one sees error.

1. Mr. Wenar's idea of property is so loose we can make the case that the builders of Hoover Dam are engaging in thieve, when they charge us
for use of electricity. Or the mining companies of N. Dakota are stealing from the citizens of the 50 states and sharing profits with ony the residents of that state.

2. Why should the profits of resource go to the people of that country only? Mr. Wenar assumes that the resources of a country belongs to all the people of that country. Why?
It came from the Earth, I'm a creature of the Earth, therefore, I own a part of the resource. Therefore, I do not own any stolen goods. I own the good that I pay for.

There is no reason than to go any farther. Now, I'm not a professor or a scholar, just an ordinary guy but common sense tells me that Mr. Wenar is not concern about property rights or the exploitation of resources. He is concern about the suffering of people under the rule of dictators. This suffering he has trace to the fact that we buy goods from those countries which puts more money into the hands of the dictators, which in turn causes more suffering for their people. Mr. Wenar's solution is to soften the defintion of "property rights" and accuse the consumers of engaging in the trade of "stolen goods".

Is this meant to scare us? We are now an accessaries to theft! It is also meant to shame us!

With the idea of property loosen Mr. Wenar reach the conclusion that the resources are stolen goods. And so, now countries and companies are now engaging in theft. And thus, the bright idea is to put a tariff on them and set the money aside for the people of the country the resources came from.

The idea is so naive it is not worth commenting on any farther.