The worst in these assertions is that those who allow themselves to submit them do not even believe them.

Frédéric Bastiat
Complete Works, Volume 2, pages 131 to 133 (in French)
January 1st, 1848

Here is an extremely short article in which Frédéric Bastiat exposes several newspapers seeing themselves as independent that oppose free-trade because of the supposed support of government towards it. Besides the fact that this is not true, he criticises the systematic opposition made not according to principles (which are recognised as valid) but depending on who is supporting one or the other policy.

Today’s quote highlights the revulsion for politics that aim at grabbing power tactically instead of interesting itself in real tenets. The objective of Le Libre-Echange newspaper is free trade and fight against protectionism, not a blind fight against protectionists.