Political Theory

Populism was in the air this week as ranchers in the Western US opposed the spread of federally-owned lands, and reformers in Switzerland look to a referendum on fractional reserve banking.

Politicians can often be found saying that it would be bad to end a government program because it would unfairly punish those who benefit from the program. But what about those who are punished and disadvantaged by the unjust program in the first place?

Here we go again. Now advocates of more government control over the economy want to redefine populism as Trumpism.

Political Correctness is best understood as propaganda. But unlike propaganda, which is particular campaign or effort, PC is all-encompassing. It seeks to mold us into modern versions of Marx’s un-alienated society man, freed of all his bourgeois pretensions and humdrum social conventions.

As an exciting year comes to a close, we want to thank all of our incredible members that allow us to do the work we do in advancing Austrian economics, freedom, and peace.

In December 1914, is an event the official histories of the “Great War” ignore, British and German Soldiers came out of their trenches and celebrated Christmas together. One soldier later observed, "Never ... was I so keenly aware of the insanity of war.”

In his new book Political Illiberalism Peter Simpson poses a fundamental challenge to John Rawls’s Political Liberalism. Though Simpson cannot be classified as a libertarian, his bold arguments will be of great use to all of us who oppose the state.

This week, the Federal Reserve raised the target Federal Funds Rate ever so slightly. The Fed perhaps felt it had to raise rates to protect its credibility, as credibility problems seem to be plaguing similar institutions worldwide.

The biggest technology problem we face today is not the rise of technology in the private sector. New technologies only improve worker productivity and wealth accumulation. The real problem is in the many ways that the state will use technology against us.

In the latest episode of Mises Weekends, Jeff Deist and Yuri Maltsev discuss Socialism, Fascism, and Trumpism.