Nothing new here: Russell Brand is saying same old socialist claptrap

By David McElroy · October 25, 2013

If you care about individual freedom, Russell Brand isn’t a hero. He’s just another ignorant buffoon selling a populist version of socialism.

Brand is a comedian and actor, but he’s now pontificating about politics and economics to a fawning worldwide audience. I’ve seen praise heaped upon him this week by otherwise-reasonable people. Why? Because he conducted a combative interview on a BBC news show in which he attacked the Establishment.

But what does Brand stand for?

“[I advocate] a socialist egalitarian scheme based on the massive redistribution of wealth, heavy taxation of corporations,” Brand said. “The very concept of profit should be reduced. … I say profit is a filthy word because wherever there is profit, there is also deficit.”

Does this sound like someone who knows anything about individual freedom? Does it sound like someone who knows anything about economics? Does it sound like anything other than the same old ignorance that has led much of the world to economic ruin since Karl Marx popularized this nonsense?

So why was his interview popular with people who should know better? Yes, he was confrontational. Yes, he was challenging the status quo. No, he wasn’t offering anything new or helpful to those of us who want freedom.

Brand is ignorant, but he’s arrogant enough to demand government force be used to take money away from producers to give it to others. Murray Rothbard spoke clearly of this sort of loudmouth.

“It is no crime to be ignorant of economics, which is, after all, a specialized discipline and one that most people consider to be a ‘dismal science,'” Rothbard wrote. “But it is totally irresponsible to have a loud and vociferous opinion on economic subjects while remaining in this state of ignorance.”

An arrogant person performing ignorant rhetoric isn’t something that needs to be praised. Beliefs such as Brand’s are dangerous. He has every right to spout them, of course, but people who understand freedom and understand economics need to make sure that people see him for what he is.

Brand isn’t a hero. He’s an ignorant and arrogant socialist.

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Lucy just made possible friends with two little girls, but the girls are more enthusiastic so far than she is. Joy, 5, and Hope, 6, just moved in with their grandmother on my street. I didn’t know this, but while Lucy and I were walking, I heard a tiny voice from the darkness cry out, “Hi, doggie!” It took me a minute to figure out where the voice was coming from, but once I did, their grandmother, Rose, came out onto the porch and gave the girls permission to pet Lucy, which delighted the girls. Joy said she wasn’t allowed off her porch since she had socks and no shoes. Lucy was shy, but allowed them to pet her a bit, while the girls marveled about how soft she is. I hope Lucy will let them be her friends. It’s a joy to see how far Lucy has come since she came to live with me. She’s nothing like the “special needs dog” who I was told would never get close to anybody.

I’ve never taken YouTube very seriously as a publishing platform — not enough to do anything more than post the occasional random video — but I’ve started laying a foundation for doing more with it in the future. I created and uploaded some simple branding to my longstanding YouTube channel this weekend and I’ll be doing more in the future. The channel has only about 300 subscribers, so if you feel so inclined, I would appreciate it if you’d subscribe. As with all things on social media, subscriber counts and views help me to get future content seen more easily by others. Click here to visit the channel.

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In the coming months and years, we’re going to need inventive and productive people pursuing things that matter. We’re going to need smart and self-directed men and women who will find ideas and create enterprises that will help bypass the political class and build a new and better society. But everything I see in media right now seems geared toward telling people how to entertain and amuse themselves. The stories are full of advice about what to binge on Netflix and what games you should be playing while you’re stuck at home. We desperately need to ignore this advice and be looking toward building new futures instead. Being passive consumers got us where we are today. It’s time that we reclaim our former role — the one that made this country wealthy — as productive and free people who build far more than we consume. This could be a great opportunity for those who will take it. Turn off Netflix. Put down the video game controller. We need new ideas, new achievements, new goals — not more coach potatoes. This is the time to be thinking and creating and planning for the future that you and I both want.

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