Period of Prosperity and Growth in Scotland
Tyler Cowen of Marginal Revolution discusses a period in Scotland’s history from 1707-1770 when Scottish cities became “among the most developed and intellectually advanced parts of Europe.”
He quotes from Arthur Herman’s book How the Scots Invented the Modern World: The True Story of How Western Europe’s Poorest Nation Created Our World & Everything in It:
…the fact that Scotland was very much the junior partner in this union also turned out to be an advantage. The new Parliament largely ignored Scotland; outbursts such as the malt riots and the threat of Jacobitism apart, the government in London paid little attention to what was happening north of the border. Scots ended up with the best of both worlds: peace and order from a strong administrative state, but freedom to develop and innovate without undue interference from those who controlled it. Over the next century, Scots would learn to rely on their own resources and ingenuity far more than their southern neighbors would…
The world that Herman is describing in this short passage reflects Ayn Rand’s view of a society operating under a “legitimate” government, where individiuals are free to manage their own lives as the government protects from both domestic and foreign aggression.
Herman’s book can be purchased from Amazon.com.
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