Letter: Sad history is repeating itself

Doesn’t anyone think that a certain candidate reminds us of a certain demagogue after World War I and before WWII?

John Maynard Keynes warned about punitive reparations on Germany. He was right. They led to an impoverished, desperate population succumbing to the charisma and lies of Adolph Hitler. The allies learned from this mistake and did nation building after WWII. So why do so many of our citizens fall for this scenario again?

Friedrich Hayek influenced Milton Friedman of the Chicago school of economics. His theories have led the U.S. and the world down the wrong path.

So now the middle class is disappearing, the media is owned by a few corporations with an agenda, Wall Street is rigged, our politicians are bought, we are at the mercy of monopolies, the economic safeguards were repealed leading to the economic meltdown in 2008, jobs are shipped overseas, trade policies have led to trade deficits and so on.

I’m sure Eisenhower is rolling over in his grave. Books have been written by Republicans with explanations: Bruce Bartlett, David Stockman, Victor Gold. I’m not laying these problems at the feet of any party because both parties vacillated back and forth over the years between the two macroeconomic theories of Hayek and Keynes and Hayek’s theories are wrong for the U.S. and the world.

This story was originally published March 27, 2016 at 8:00 PM with the headline "Letter: Sad history is repeating itself."