[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 41 (Wednesday, April 5, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E494-E495]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         HONORING AARON KINSEY

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. RALPH M. HALL

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, April 5, 2000

  Mr. HALL of Texas. Mr. Speaker, it is a privilege to share with my 
colleagues a speech written by an outstanding citizen of the Fourth 
District of Texas, Mr. Aaron Kinsey, who thoughtfully describes the 
elements of the free enterprise system upon which our country was 
built. Mr. Kinsey notes that there are four basic freedoms:
  ``The first of these freedoms is simply the freedom of economic 
choice. We, as Americans, inherently have the freedom to choose where 
we will work and for whom we will work. As business owners we have the 
freedom to make and sell whatever products we choose within the limits 
of public safety and welfare, and to charge whatever prices we feel 
will be the most profitable. And finally . . . we are free to take 
risks. Ultimately, the choices we make will determine our success and 
failure, and if we do fail, we know it was by a choice that we 
ourselves made.
  ``Our second basic freedom . . . is voluntary exchange . . . The 
priorities that determine what we do with our money are different for 
everyone, but the bottom line is that the decision is ours. In a free 
enterprise system, voluntary exchange works to the perceived advantage 
of both persons making the exchange.
  ``Our next basic freedom is our right to private property. This 
freedom gives us the right to do as we wish with our possessions. Our 
Founding Fathers showed us that they guarded this freedom by passing 
the 5th Amendment, which aside from addressing other issues, guarantees 
us our right to private property. These great men knew that private 
property gives an incentive for people to work, save, and invest. 
Naturally, people know that the harder they work, the more rewards they 
will receive. These rewards can be passed on to their children so that 
they can have a better life.
  ``Another freedom we as Americans have is a motivation to earn and 
increase our wealth. Under the free enterprise system, we are free to 
take risks in order to enhance our wealth and well-being. Any 
entrepreneur takes the risk; some succeed and some fail. For example, 
Ninfa Laurenzo of Dallas, Texas, was widowed with five children in 
1969. In 1973, she

[[Page E495]]

faced bankruptcy, but by 1993, she was the head of a multi-million 
dollar corporation. Ninfa's Inc. now operates 34 restaurants and 
employs 1,300 people . . .
  ``Finally, no discussion about free enterprise can be complete 
without addressing the importance of competition. Competition is the 
force that prohibits market anarchy. Competition does this by allowing 
businesses to enter and leave the market as they wish. When businesses 
are in a market together, they keep that market moving and improving. 
This improvement allows the customer to have the best product at the 
best price. Without competition, the monopolistic business can decide 
what the customer should have in addition to being able to set the 
price.''
  Mr. Kinsey concludes that, ``American society would be very different 
if our Founding Fathers had not established a government in which free 
enterprise could thrive. Fortunately, we live in a system that allows 
us the freedoms of economic choice, voluntary exchange, private 
property, and profit motive. It is these freedoms that have helped make 
the American economy the greatest and most coveted in the world.''

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