"The goal of planning will have been described by some such term as 'common welfare,' which only conceals the absence of real agreement on the ends of planning.... The effect of the people's agreeing that there must be central planning, without agreeing on the ends, will be rather as if a group of people were to commit themselves to take a journey together without agreeing where they want to go: with the result that they may all have to make a journey which most of them do not want at all."

Accurately predicting a major trend in contemporary American politics, Hayek further argued that legislative indecision would produce "dissatisfaction with democratic institutions," leading to demands that policy decisions be "taken out of politics." In order to overcome gridlock, legislatures must delegate much of their decision-making power to the executive branch, particularly to bureaucrats insulated from constituents. Gridlock also elicits popular demands for a strong leader who can "take charge." In these circumstances, loyalty naturally accrues to a politician (e. g., Mussolini) who promises to "get things done" without too many references to concrete specifics, since the latter are necessarily controversial. Influences added on each page are highlighted in red below.