The holistic planner overlooks the fact that it is easy to centralize power but impossible to centralize all the knowledge which is distributed over many individual minds, and whose centralization would be necessary for the wise wielding of centralized power. But this fact has far-reaching consequences. Unable to ascertain what is in the minds of so many individuals, he must try to simplify his problems by eliminating individual differences: he must try to control and stereotype interests and beliefs by education and propaganda.
– Karl Popper, economist, author
Hayek’s Conceit of Knowledge by other words. Looking at the average politician (with scarcely higher, if any, intelligence than the average citizen), they may have the power to consolidate power over others by dint of being elected, but simply being elected does not given them that superior knowledge to manage better.
They just keep thinking they do.
And it has never worked successfully, ever. But they never think about that, either.
