Weston Koyama Defends Free Markets Over Central Planning as Socialism Gains Ground After 2008
Updated
Updated · OregonLive · Aug 13
Weston Koyama Defends Free Markets Over Central Planning as Socialism Gains Ground After 2008
1 articles · Updated · OregonLive · Aug 13
Summary
Weston Koyama argues liberals should fix capitalism’s distortions rather than hand the state greater control over production, property and prices.
The Portland public defense attorney says socialism’s appeal grew after the 2008 financial collapse, student debt and unaffordable housing convinced many that hard work no longer guarantees stability.
Koyama contends those failures came from government-backed moral hazard, federal housing policy, monetary intervention, bailouts and regulatory capture—not from free markets themselves.
He adds that housing scarcity reflects zoning and regulatory barriers that protect incumbents, and warns central planning can entrench insiders, punish dissent and narrow individual choice.
His broader case is that markets bounded by the rule of law disperse power more effectively than state direction, making economic freedom a safeguard for personal liberty.