A Confusion of Our Age
One of the gravest errors of our age is mistaking government subsidy for capitalism.
When Washington funnels billions into Intel—now even taking a ~10% equity stake in the company—it is paraded as “investing in America” . But this is not capitalism. This is corporatism. It is soft socialism cloaked in patriotic language: the State directing capital while telling families they are freer for it.
True capitalism never requires subsidies. It trusts free men and women to create, risk, and innovate without Washington playing banker.
The Forgotten Prosperity of the 1800s
Our pundits forget—or choose to ignore—that the real pearls of American prosperity were formed not by subsidies but by liberty.
- Hard Money: After 1834, America effectively operated on gold. There were suspensions (Civil War), resumptions (1879), and formal embrace by 1900 . But across the century, money held weight because it was tied to reality.
- Lean Budgets: In 1835, Andrew Jackson paid off the national debt entirely—the only time in U.S. history .
- Private Risk, Private Reward: Entrepreneurs built railroads, factories, and fortunes not because government picked winners, but because capital was free to flow.
Yes, tariffs were high through much of the century . And yes, the broadest middle-class expansion came after WWII . But the 1800s remain a testament: where capital was sound and Washington was limited, prosperity and independence flourished.
The Drift Toward State Capital
Contrast that with the eras when Washington seized the reins:
- Lincoln’s Greenbacks (1860s): Paper promises replaced hard specie.
- FDR’s Alphabet Agencies (1930s): Bureaucracies multiplied; the State became employer, banker, and regulator all at once.
- The Great Society (1960s): Welfare dependency hardened into a way of life.
- 2008 Bailouts: “Too big to fail” became official policy, with hundreds of billions poured into banks and AIG .
Each of these was sold as “saving America.” Each left families more dependent, less free.
Intel, the CHIPS Act, and Today’s Soft Socialism
The CHIPS Act was framed as a bulwark against China. Intel has received up to $7.86B in direct subsidies, another $3B for defense contracts, and now a government equity stake .
That last piece is different. Subsidies are bad enough; ownership crosses a new line. When the State owns part of Intel, no matter how “non-controlling,” it has moved toward the means of production. That is socialism in slow motion.
History shows: subsidies do not create strength. They create dependency. What Intel gains in subsidy dollars, America loses in freedom, innovation, and stewardship of capital.
Real-World Examples of Shrinking the State
History offers modern examples of nations trusting liberty over bureaucracy:
- Estonia (1990s): Mart Laar’s reforms cut deeply into bureaucracy, with reductions up to ~25% in civil servants . Not 100%, but still courageous.
- Latvia (2009): Facing crisis, Latvia slashed public wages by 15–20% and pledged to shrink bureaucracy by ~30% .
- Georgia (2004): President Saakashvili fired 85% of the traffic police in a single stroke, rebuilding trust from scratch .
- Argentina (2023–present): Javier Milei’s radical reforms—cutting subsidies, loosening controls, dollarizing parts of the economy—have brought inflation down from triple digits to ~1.5–1.9% monthly in 2025 .
Each case proves: liberty works. Bureaucracy consumes.
Austrian Insight: Capital Must Be Free
The Austrian School reminds us: capital is not just physical—it is abstract and monetary. It is the stored fruit of discipline and labor. When that capital is surrendered to Washington, families lose stewardship.
Nelson Nash’s Infinite Banking philosophy is about this very point: “get the bankers out of your life”. Whether banker or bureaucrat, the principle is the same: don’t surrender control of your capital.
Ryan Griggs puts it plainly: your business, your productivity, your stewardship has been your best-performing asset. To give that up to “managers” or the State is folly.
The Real Path Forward
If Washington wanted a stronger America, it would not buy Intel shares. It would:
- End endless wars and bring troops home.
- Cut welfare dependency.
- Shut down overreaching alphabet agencies. (Yes—the USPS is constitutional, but most modern bureaucracies are mission-creep incarnate .)
- End foreign aid and entanglements.
- Abolish the Federal Reserve.
- Let the market—whether gold, silver, Bitcoin, or something yet unseen—choose the medium of exchange .
Andrew Jackson did it once. Georgia did it in 2004. Latvia did it in 2009. Argentina is doing it now. America can do it again.
A Call to True Stewardship
Proverbs 13:22 tells us: “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children.”
That inheritance cannot be built on subsidies, fiat credit, or political favors. It must be built on stewardship—faithful, disciplined, liberty-rooted stewardship.
Intel doesn’t need Washington’s welfare. Families don’t need Washington’s ownership. What we need is a return to sound money, limited government, and free stewardship of capital.
This is the path of blessing. This is the path of legacy.
Control your capital. Build your legacy. Bless generations.
