The fundamental question is, who is the owner of the funds paid in taxes? Is it the citizens, who have earned the funds and who turn them over under threat of being fined or imprisoned — or even killed — or is it the government?
Just as, for them, liberty must be the highest political end, peace must be the highest end of foreign policy.
If the entrepreneur aims at the highest possible profit, he performs a service to society in managing an enterprise. Whoever hinders him from doing this acts against the interests of society and imperils the satisfaction of consumer needs.
What are the results of the patent system itself? The results are distorted research, protectionism, wealth transfers, and enrichment of the patent bar. Large companies, such as IBM, amass giant patent portfolios.
The economist should not allow his readers to accept the current myth that inflation is a scourge that governments try, with varying success, to keep in check. This myth is one of the consequences of economists generally failing to make explicit their assumptions.
Murray Rothbard, in his life, was known as Mr. Libertarian. We can make a solid case that the title now belongs to Walter Block, a student of Rothbard's whose own vita is as thick as a phone book, as diverse as Wikipedia.
I have not been persuaded by Mish's alternate framework. To be clear, I'm not arguing that Mish's fans should abandon their hero. Rather, I will simply point out that Mish's "calls" have not been nearly as prescient as he so often claims.
We must face the fact, once and for all, that the argument of economists against the draft, though correct as far as it goes, is hopelessly narrow and inadequate.
I hope that, in raising money for the Mises Institute by finishing the marathon, I will have enough inspiration to surmount the challenges I will face while running. My aim is to raise $1,000 for every mile that I run.
R.C. wouldn't tolerate news stories that referred to the "public schools," for example. His reporters were required to refer to them as "government schools." R.C. himself preferred the phrase "gun-run schools" and used it liberally on the editorial page.
