Keynes saw centralized economic direction as an improvement on market coordination. This provided cover to later corporatist authoritarians who wanted to control every aspect of life.
Fascism entirely agrees with Mr. Maynard Keynes, despite the latter’s prominent position as a Liberal.”
So wrote the British fascist James Strachey Barnes in his 1928 book Universal Aspects of Fascism, which included a glowing preface written by Mussolini himself. “In fact,” Barnes continued, “Mr. Keynes’s excellent little book, The End of Laissez-Faire…might, so far as it goes, serve as a useful introduction to fascist economics.”
Even today, crackpots apply Keynes’s name to economic nonsense, hoping that some of his credibility will rub off; what might be called “Keyneswashing.” Was Barnes “Keyneswashing” fascist economics, or is there a genuine similarity with the Keynesian variety?
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Fascists, socialists and all ists in between who want to exert control over other people's lives and accrete power to themselves love Keynes.
I don’t know why they’re referring to him as a liberal. He was an elitist progressive, which was considered illiberal at the time.
Whether people agree or not, the quotes definitely add historical context to the debate.
Definitely encourages going back to primary sources instead of repeating secondhand claims.
Even if someone disagrees with the conclusion, the historical references are worth exploring.
The relationship between central planning and political freedom is still a relevant discussion today.
It's a reminder that ideas can be interpreted in ways their authors never intended.