Fred Huenefeld, Jr.

LaRouche’s Idea of Physical Economy

Fred Huenefeld, Jr., based in Louisiana, is a Board Member of the Schiller Institute. He became a collaborator of Lyndon LaRouche more than 40 years ago, when he first encountered Lyn’s ideas. Fred took these ideas to many organizations and networks, of which he was a leader. He is a former President of the Louisiana Association of Soil Districts, a former President of the National Association of Raw Materials (NORM), and a former Treasurer of the Louisiana State Democratic Party. Fred brought Lyndon LaRouche himself to Louisiana several times, about which LaRouche once said in a chat with Fred: “You’re the only person I know who’s more energetic than I am.”

This is an edited transcript of his presentation to the second panel, “Earth’s Next Fifty Years,” of the August 14, 2021 LaRouche Legacy Foundation seminar, “On the 50th Anniversary of LaRouche’s Stunning Forecast of August 15, 1971: So, Are You Finally Willing To Learn Economics?”

LaRouche’s Idea of Physical Economy

When we look back to the Bible, Timothy Chapter 2, verses 6-7, states the farmer is the first partaker of the fruit. If you understand that, the Lord says you understand all things. This physical economy is the fruit, when it comes to physical economy, it’s the fruit for mankind. Lyn and I agreed on the principle of how society should be put together, and how everything that exists in the world today starts with the physical economy. And every dollar that comes from the land creates eight dollars, ten dollars in trade terms. When you have a trade term of plus dollars, you have prosperity. When you have debt bondage, devaluation of the currency, you have debt. And that’s what we’ve experienced.

I’ve handled seven or eight thousand bankruptcy cases of people who have lost everything they had. It gave me an incentive to study even more what Lyn’s talked about on physical economy.

One thing I noticed, Lyn, in the speech he made on Food for Peace, it was so powerful. You can have prosperity in a physical economy, and with a farm, you create wealth in the whole economic system. He was an advocate of that, and he had a Food for Peace conference in Chicago and gave a powerful presentation there.

I attended a number of the conferences in Washington, DC that Lyn had. He was always very specific in recognizing the creativeness of the human mind and the physical economy. That’s how it all starts.

When I testified in Congress, I took my lariat rope with me, and I roped a chair in front of the Congressmen and pulled it to me, and told them I brought that lariat rope to rope the wooden-headed economists who got this country in trouble. I testified on the physical economy in Congress that day.

On Glass-Steagall

I took it to the Louisiana Realtors Association; I was active in the Realtors Association. I got the board of directors to support the return to Glass-Steagall. And I also got the state society of Louisiana Realtors to endorse the principle of Glass-Steagall. I took that resolution to Washington with me, and met with Alan Greenspan at the Realtors’ meeting. I gave him a copy of my presentation on why we needed to return to Glass-Steagall. He made a statement to me, he said, “That’s the biggest mistake I ever made, doing away with Glass-Steagall.” That’s what Alan Greenspan told me.

I went to Germany; I was on the Board of the National Association of Raw Materials, but I went as a Schiller Institute Board Member. We spoke in different places in Germany. One of the places in Germany we spoke at was one of the universities. I taught a class on the American System of economics. The students in Germany were very receptive; very intent on listening to what I had to say.

Lyndon LaRouche: Honored Guest in Louisiana

We had a wonderful opportunity to do that. One time I had him in Monroe to the Bayou DeSiard Country Club, and I had the mayors of Ouachita Parish, the two past mayors, had the councilman there, had the district attorney, had the sheriff, had the leading officials of the parish. They had a meeting with Lyn. He gave a briefing on the American System of economics. He did an outstanding job on why we need to return to Glass-Steagall.

I also had him come to the Rotary Club—about 200 members of the Rotary Club—and he spoke to the Rotary Club. Got a wonderful reception there at that presentation.

Lyn went to New Orleans to the state Democratic Party Convention, and I went down there. I had the opportunity to introduce him to the Louisiana Democratic Party. I met with Victor Bussie [AFL-CIO leader], and I introduced him to the party convention. He did a good job; very effective.

Testifying on Behalf of Lyndon LaRouche

I had the opportunity to testify in that case. Ramsey Clark asked me to come up, and I testified in that case for Lyn at the first commission. But I went to Washington and testified on behalf of Lyndon LaRouche.

On the Power of LaRouche’s Ideas

My grandfather, in 1880, built a one-room schoolhouse in Nebraska. When I went to the one-room schoolhouse, I went in and there were two statues on the desk. One was a statue of George Washington; one was a statue of Friedrich Schiller. The same statue I have that I’m looking at right now in my office. That’s how high Schiller was recognized in the United States.

I’ve had a wonderful experience cooperating and working with the LaRouche organization. It causes you to think creatively; it causes you to think on a higher level. Particularly, the impacts that the Classical music had in the society is so powerful, that the Schiller Institute promotes and advocates. I always look forward to working with y’all.