Custom «Adam Smith and the Adam Smith Institute» Essay Paper

Karl Marx once commented, 'if anything is certain, it is that I myself am not a Marxist.' If Adam Smith were alive today, would he be a member of the Adam Smith Institute. The statement may be taken as true, as the main concern of the institute is reduction of taxes.

The above topic cannot be discussed without discussing who was Adam Smith. Adam Smith was a Scottish philosopher and economist. He lived at a time when world viewed the national wealth in terms of silver and gold. Importation of goods was seen as a conduit through which this wealth was given away. It was only through export that these precious metals were reclaimed by a nation. Most countries imposed taxes on imports and subside on exports. The practice was extended to the intercity trade. As an economist, Smith advocated for more movement of goods. He argued that freedom and self interest were not necessarily a recipe for chaos. Adam Smith Institute, Wikipedia (2010, p. 3).

Adam Smith was a capitalist believed in removal of trade barriers. His approach was that individual freedom would be achieved through trade. On the other hand, Karl Marx believed that socialism would replace capitalism. Adam smith advocated for free market, a contrast to the Karl Marx who viewed free market as an approach that would only help make the rich more richer while driving the poor to grater heights of poverty. Smith place into individual the responsibility of improving once live, where-else Karl Marx argued that as a person strives to better his live he only does no good but endanger the society.

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Having discussed what Adam Smith advocated for, I intend to answer the question whether he would be a member of the Adam Smith Institute. The Adam Smith Institute is a British institute whose concern is free market and social policies. The institute has injected both choice and competition. The concern is how the government wastage can be reduced as well as cut cost. The main concern is to develop ideas that can be economically viable and practical politically. The institute is credited with privatization, a move that was seen as a means of opening market and liberalization. The aim is to ensure that the policies that are developed are as practical as possible, as Adam Smith had advocated for more open trade (Difference Between.Net Difference between Adam Smith and Karl Marx, 2010 p. 3).

Adam Smith, it can be argued would be a member of Adam Smith Institute. Considering the naming of the institute, the gesture was recognition of how the ideas he had advocated for had gained acceptance. There has been increased believe on the positive aspect of the market liberalization. Adam Smith was a liberal during his time, advocating for opening of international and intercity trade so as to improve the individual well being. To him, in trade, whether import or export, both parties are bound to benefit.

The founders of the institute are also Neo Liberal. Both Pirie and Butler are seen are believers in liberalization. They have elsewhere been termed as individuals who were pessimistic that liberalization would work. Adam Smith advocated for free market, and the founders of Adam Smith Institute are credited with foreseeing the privatization of the telecommunication. Adam Smith Advocated for open market when the national wealth was guarded against import business. The founders of the Adam Smith Institute advocated for privatization of all sectors, including the Health Services (Kandiah & Seldon, 1996, p. 75).

The Adam Smith Institute advocates for free market, hence borrowing from the beliefs of the person it is named after. The institute was credited for being at the center of the privatization associated with the Thatcher Era, the period associated with Margaret Thatcher who was the British Prime Minister.

When Adam Smith proposed the need for free market, many people would have thought that he was out of his mind. Others would have seen the proposals as unpractical. Such a view can be historically proved to be wrong since the world over, nations and have opened to international trade, and the intercity trade is also not controlled. The institute has also come up with policies that have been adopted by various governments, especially in Britain. Adam Smith would be a contributor to books and policy proposals on free trade.

The institute has extended its influence to cover the international trade, as Adam Smith has forecasted. The current trend would be as Adam Smith had predicted, with liberalization of trade taking the center stage. Liberalization is akin to free trade or free flow of goods and services as driven by market forces, at both local and international levels. To Adam smith taxation was an impediment to free flow of goods, especially when they were aimed at controlling flow of goods and the gold which was at the time considered the wealth of a nation.

The institute is also known for facilitating meetings for people involved in free trade. The group brings together various personalities to speak on free trade. The institute in involved in shaping and changing the way things are done. The institute has played a great role in passing of policy related to privatization of various policies of liberalization.

As an individual, Adam Smith had interest in free market. Adam Smith is associated with modern economies and capitalism. He was interested in delivering public lectures. He published a book known as the wealth of nations. In this book, Adam Smith came up as person who was well established in economic thought (McLean, 2006. 10).

Adam Smith was influential internationally as evidenced by the number of lectures he conducted. The influence of Adam Smith has been underscored by the students who enrolled in the institute he was teaching. To him national wealth was labor as opposed to gold or silver reserve. Just as the Adam Smith Institute has had influence, Adam Smith explored approaches that can lead to economic prosperity. To Adam Smith, the owners of resources can use them competitively if there is free trade (Sutherland. 1993 p. 56).

The ideas of Adam Smith that self-interest what is referred to as free market can be termed as leading to economic well being. He sees individual undertaking labor as benefiting himself as well as the society. In the liberalized market, each individual should produce things that are valued by others in the society. The Adam Smith Institute is concerned with undertakings that do bring about national prosperity. The institute sees liberalization as a recipe for liberalization and specialization that would increase productivity. Through liberalization, artificial barriers to trade are overcome. The liberalization advocated by the Adam Smith Institute would open the market for goods considered surplus. There would therefore be trade for goods that are unavailable in a given state or city (Adam Smith Institute, Europe Favorite Think Tank Website, 2005, p. 2).

The liberalization can be seen as bringing about invention and new ideas, traits that Adam Smith believed would be achieved by the government granting patent rights and other regulations that encourage international and intercity trade. In liberalization the government should provide the infrastructure to facilitate free flow of goods. Like the fundamental believes of the Adam Smith Institute, Smith believed in free competition as a way of fostering growth. It is therefore evidenced that there is a lot of common similarities with what Adam Smith advocated for. If he were alive today, he would be a member of Adam Smith Institute.