Here's Amity Shlaes, at Forbes.com, on the Great Depression. A selection:
As for President Hoover, his tenure was marked not by laissez faire or
respect for private property–indeed, Hoover had labeled property a
"fetish" before he became president. The Great Engineer was in fact the
Great Intervener, meddling in multiple areas, raising taxes and backing
tariffs, to the economy's detriment. Mistrusting the stock market as
unreal, Hoover berated short-sellers and exhorted businesses to keep
wages high when they could ill afford it.
respect for private property–indeed, Hoover had labeled property a
"fetish" before he became president. The Great Engineer was in fact the
Great Intervener, meddling in multiple areas, raising taxes and backing
tariffs, to the economy's detriment. Mistrusting the stock market as
unreal, Hoover berated short-sellers and exhorted businesses to keep
wages high when they could ill afford it.
