in;Scotland?”;Mr.;Smith;is;hoping;you
will say no. Indeed, each expansion in
world trade has increased worldwide
wealth, decreased disease, and reduced
hunger. Trade helps to eliminate scarcity.
The success of trade in creating wealth
leads to the next conclusion of history:
freedom;works.;The;recently;published
book;Nanocivics: Liberating the DNA of
Civilization documents the historical
record of societies that allow individual
freedom in forming relationships, assess-ing;value,;and;making;exchanges.;They
have dramatically different results than
those societies with top-down manage-ment;of;their;citizens.;Societies;that;try
to;purge;profit;as;indecent;actually;only
limit;profit;to;the;elite,;ending;progress
for the common family. A society that
distributes the opportunity for profit
widely spurs industriousness, competition, and innovation.
For decades, the Wall Street Jour-
nal and the Heritage Foundation have
tracked;the;Index;of;Economic;Freedom,
a;ranking;designed;to;identify;how;indi-
vidual countries perform on the rule of
law, openness, and competitiveness. In
2011,;the;top;five;freest;countries;were
Hong;Kong,;Singapore,;Australia,;New
Zealand, and Switzerland, all growing,
wealthy economies. Meanwhile, the least
free;countries;were;North;Korea,;Zim-
babwe,;Cuba,;Eritrea,;and;Venezuela,;all
poor countries with little or no growth.
These findings, including the histori-
cal record, consistently show that the
freedom criteria correlate with the pur-
chasing;power;of;the;average;citizen.;For
example,;in;the;Asia;Pacific;area,;the;top
five;freest;countries;had;a;GDP;per;capita
of;$44,000,;and;the;bottom;five;least;free
countries;averaged;only;$3,000.;In;Eu-
rope,;the;average;family;in;the;five;freest
countries;is;nearly;five;times;wealthier
than;the;average;family;in;the;five;least
free countries.
Unfortunately, while the history of economics shows a clear path on the big issues such as exchange and freedom, history also shows that such a path is too often
bypassed.;Societies;seeking;to;bring;order
to the activities of the masses through ag-grandizing;the;power;of;a;ruling;clique
have suffered. To the extent we lean away
from the lessons of economic history and
limit freedom in favor of collectivism, we
erode the resources available for the next
generation;to;make;their;own;choices;and
build their own wealth. Societies allowing people to exchange the value of their
own resources and skills, without the
domination of business or political elites,
have succeeded. If we build small-scale
strength through individual freedom of
choice, we build up resources for the next
generation to thrive.
Friedrich;Hayek,;an;economist;whose
ideas helped topple the Soviet Union,
stated a challenge that we as homeschool
parents can adopt as our own: “We must
make;the;building;of;a;free;society;once
more an intellectual adventure, a deed of
courage;.;.;.;Unless;we;make;the;philo-
sophic foundations of a free society once
more a living intellectual issue, and its
implementation;a;task;which;challenges
the ingenuity and imagination of our
liveliest minds, the prospects of freedom
are;indeed;dark.;But;if;we;can;regain;that
belief in the power of ideas . . . the battle
is;not;lost.”
Mike Sims is the author of Nanocivics:
Liberating;the;DNA;of;Civilization. He
and his wife, Sarah, homeschool their
seven children. Mike brings twenty years
of experience in local government leadership and the eye of a trained economist
to the question of cities and families. He
has a B.S. in public affairs from Indiana
University and a master’s degree in economics from the University of Texas at
Arlington. He was featured in the award-winning documentary Subdivided: Community and Isolation in America.
www.TheOldSchoolhouse.com
So your child wants to study eco-
nomics but you’re not sure where
to;start?;Join;Mike;Sims;on;School-
house Teachers.com, the curriculum
arm of The Old Schoolhouse® Maga-
zine, for a fun and creative approach
to;a;difficult;subject.;Mike;has;ana-
lyzed;and;taught;economics;through
units with titles such as these:
•;Chocolate;Economics
•;Pirate;Economics
•;Gamma;Ray;Economics
•;Football;Economics
•;Ski;Slope;Economics
•;Economics;Fistfight
Stop;by;and;take;a;look;at;all;Mike
Sims has to offer on Schoolhouse-
Teachers.com.
A society that
distributes the
opportunity for
profit;widely;spurs
industriousness,
competition, and
innovation.
