Wake up to cronyism and central planning - a sure route to Orwellian tyranny!

Janet Levy brings to our attention a book by Carol Roth entitled, The War on Small Business.

Roth points out several biased inconsistencies in lockdown rules. Large corporations never shuttered; in fact, they prospered during the year. The government allowed large-box retailers to remain open, while smaller stores – possibly environs of lesser infectivity – were penalized for opening. The book reports on fighters like Shelley Luther, of Dallas, TX, who went to jail for keeping her salon open, though she maintained strict safety protocols. Driven to desperation, she and her staff had decided to work. “Feeding my kids is not selfish,” she told the judge. “If you think the law is more important than getting kids fed, please go ahead with your decision but I’m not going to shut the salon.”

Through examples like Luther’s, the book raises many questions. Why should a large pet store that grooms dogs be open while nail salons were ordered shut? How could businesses that sold alcohol and marijuana be declared “essential”? Why close houses of worship (or limit the number of worshippers) when more people could gather in large grocery stores? How could left-wing, Antifa and BLM protests, where demonstrators violated masking and social-distancing rules and turned violent, be granted permission? Why did police hold back when these protestors looted, vandalized or set fire to small businesses? What began as government “helping society” became a power grab that enforced arbitrary standards.

During the pandemic shutdown, says Roth, there was an attempt to destabilize independent economic entities. Polices favored large companies and many businesses were made dependent on government handouts. Relief programs were heavily slanted towards big business, while small businesses were ordered closed, sending their customers to bigger companies. The CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security) Act, a $2.2 trillion economic stimulus bill, was based on past income, not on need. Small businesses received less than 20% of the overall relief package even though they account for half of the economy and were disproportionately forced to shut down. Of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) allocation of $521 billion, 75% was garnered by the largest 13.5% applicants.

Roth’s analysis justifies her claim that the pandemic was opportunistically used. She warns Americans to wake up to cronyism and central planning – a sure route to Orwellian tyranny.

Read more here: https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2022/05/the_real_black_swan_of_2020_the_assault_on_small_business.html