Bureaucracy

Bureaucracy contrasts the two forms of economic management—that of a free-market economy and that of a bureaucracy. In the market economy entrepreneurs are driven to serve consumers by their desire to earn profits and to avoid losses. In a bureaucracy, the managers must comply with orders issued by the legislative body under which they operate; they may not spend without authorization, and they may not deviate from the path prescribed by law.

Ludwig von Mises here lucidly demonstrates how the...