Bryan Caplan wrote that in his first 17 years of life, he never encountered an opponent to policies like the minimum wage, FDA and social security. And he grew up in “bland Northridge, California”, not some “leftist enclave.”
He has me beat by 5 years. I, too, did not grow up in a leftist enclave. Just a “bland” midwestern town where the populist defenses for these policies that Bryan wrote more about in his post were taken as gospel.
Caplan’s post is worth reading. In it, he criticizes intellectuals who “yes, but…” the writings of French Economist Frederic Bastiat’s, who dismantles these populist defenses.
Caplan asserts that said intellectuals don’t display higher regard for Bastiat’s work for fear of damaging the political base they need to sport their solutions on the rest of us.
Our Dinner Table 
The link takes me to a Wikipedia entry on infant mortality. I realize that Bryan has written on the economics of having more children, but I’m not sure I get the connection. I must admit that from an early age my parents explained the follies of minimum wage, the FDA and social security. Perhaps that’s because we had as guests in our home the likes of Leonard Read, Henry Hazlitt and Hans Sennholz. Anyway, I the infant mortality thing went way over my head.
Thanks. I fixed the link. You’ve had some very distinguished guests in your home.
Yeah, I think I read “I,Pencil” before I read The Cat In The Hat.
OK, here’s the real link: http://econlog.econlib.org/archives/2012/08/the_ideological_2.html
….and in response to Bryan’s confusion about not growing up in a liberal enclave, the general population of Northridge may not have been liberal (by California standards), but it’s a safe bet that his teachers were indoctrinated in progressivism.