In Tuesday’s New York Times, former Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens calls for a repeal of the Second Amendment, calling it a “relic of the 18th century.” 

An audio version of this article is available here.

The spectacle of anti-gun marches this past weekend, at times both sinister and maudlin, provides yet another example that “democracy” does not yield some kind of livable compromise on any given issue. Instead it creates division and distrust, fed by a media environment that encourages using children as props, promotes emotion over reason, and confuses motion with action.  

The crusade for greater gun control received another PR victory today with an op-ed by retired Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens in the New York Times calling for the repeal of the 2nd Amendment. 

On Friday, President Trump signed the omnibus spending bill for 2018. The $1.3 trillion bill was so monstrous that it would have made the biggest spender in the Obama Administration blush. The image of leading Congressional Democrats Pelosi and Schumer grinning and gloating over getting everything they wanted — and then some — will likely come back to haunt Republicans at the midterm elections. If so, they will deserve it.

The longer I taught economics to university students, the more I came to appreciate subtleties in markets grounded in secure private property rights. Indeed, as my awareness of these subtleties developed, a sense of awe arose. The subtleties go far beyond that typically drilled into freshmen and sophomores.

Setting the Stage

Let’s put everything in terms of a simple product like raspberries. Buyers and sellers have conflicting objectives. Buyers want low prices; sellers want high prices. 

It was great to have C.Jay Engel join us for this years AERC. 

At AustroLibertarian.com he has written about his experiences at the conference.