“Many governments have responded to the economic downturn by increasing the size of the public sector. It was remarkable how quickly they resuscitated the theory that assumes more government spending can boost economic growth. Popularized by John Maynard Keynes in the 1930s, the theory is based on the notion that government can ‘prime the pump’ by spending money, which then begins to circulate through the economy. Keynesian theory sounds good but it overlooks the fact that, in the real world, government can’t inject money into the economy without first taking money out of the economy.” (02/01/10)