So far, 2025 has been anything from dull. The incoming president has been sentenced for 34 felony counts, California is facing some of the most severe wildfires in American history, and the Republican side of the aisle is discussing buying Greenland and making Canada the 51st state. Yes, this year is certainly setting itself up—for better or worse—to be one for the books.
Most people’s first exposure to economics occurs in their 7th grade social studies class, or at least somewhere in that vicinity, then high school seniors often take it in high school. To introduce students to the topic, the teacher explains that there are three main approaches a country can take: socialism, capitalism, or an in-between system that gets labeled a “mixed economy.”
Abolishing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) should rank high on the list as the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) seeks to cut reckless federal spending. This agency—created in the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010, known as Dodd-Frank, intended to address what many considered the causes of the 2008-09 financial crisis—has, in fact, harmed some Americans whom it was intended to benefit.
Many market participants appeared astonished to learn that Von Der Leyen and Scholz in Davos were steadfastly pursuing the policies that have severely damaged the EU. However, this is typical bureaucratic behavior.
In a predictable move, EU bureaucrats have chosen to exploit the new Trump administration as an external enemy, rather than seizing the opportunity to unleash the immense potential of their economies. Bureaucrats do not care about results; they care about bureaucracy.
While the political rhetoric has been hot since the January 29 collision of a US Army helicopter and a civilian airliner killed 67 people near Reagan National Airport, little has been said as to why military helicopters are even operating near that crowded airspace. Despite the claims of “national security needs,” the reason for these dangerous flights is to serve as a mundane air taxi provision for DC’s political elites.
Among his recent jingoistic outbursts, President-elect Donald Trump stated in a social media post that American possession of Greenland is an “absolute necessity” for national security, and.
