Interventionism

President Barack Obama promised recently in a <i>Wall Street Journal</i> op-ed to undertake a grand review of economic regulation in the United States and get rid of rules that "are not worth the cost, or that are just plain dumb." Yet he has added plenty of dumb regulations himself.

The Mises Circle in Naples, Florida. Recorded 26 February 2011.

The Mises Circle in Naples, Florida. Recorded 26 February 2011.

From Part III of A History of Money and Banking in the United States: The Colonial Era to World War II: “From Hoover to Roosevelt: T

The main reason why so many state and local governments are bankrupt, or on the verge of bankruptcy, is the combination of government-run monopolies and government-employee unions. Government-employee unions have vastly more power than do private-sector unions because the entities they work for are typically monopolies. Their days are numbered.

Higher food prices set off the revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt and the mass protests in countries like Algeria, Jordan, Yemen, Bahrain, and Iran.

Announcing that 50 million Americans are uninsured means nothing. It could be our government’s involvement that has led to the current situation.

Tunisia and Egypt have a massive youth-unemployment problem. Unsurprisingly, they also have a system of "free" college education.

Firms have lots of cash on their balance sheet and it's not earning anything. What to do? Buy the competition.

Socialism has simmered down to the advocacy of strong government, with this proviso: that that government is best which is run by socialists. Too many capitalists have made their peace with this system.