Without A Prayer

clipped from www.qando.net I think this captures my feelings about the situation: “[C]rony capitalism” has as much to do with real capitalism as praying mantises have to do with real prayer.” – Donald J. Boudreaux, Cafe Hayek Boudreaux is responding to an article by Gerald O’Driscoll a few days ago in which O’Driscoll took on the notion that “crony capitalism” is simply an natural evolution of capitalism.  Boudreaux had a slight nit to pick with the author but his characterization of crony capitalism was dead on. O’Driscoll covers many of the myths that those who want to characterize crony capitalism as a problem only to be found under a capitalist system.  In fact it has little to do with capitalism at all.  It’s simply cronyism and, once you understand what is being described, it can exist under any system that has a government. You see, that’s the one ingredient that is necessary for it to exist.