The Week in Review: December 5, 2015
The holiday weekend gave way to a tumultuous week full of significant and somber headlines. Here are three stories we’ve been following closely:
Bernie Sanders Is Right: The US Is Already a “Socialist” Country
Last month, Bernie Sanders pointed out that once upon a time, government programs such as Social Security were regarded as “socialism.” Specifically, speaking about the New Deal and Franklin Roosevelt, Sanders said:
Łukasz Dominiak: Is Europe’s Future in the East?
Brazil: Big Government, Small Wages
Why has the Brazilian congress voted to proceed with impeachment proceedings against President Dilma Rousseff? While there are no doubt many intricacies of local politics involved, the fact that the Brazilian economy is tanking is no small part of it.
(Bruno Rosi explores some recent history in today’s Mises Daily.)
A Behind the Scenes Look at the November Jobs Report
The Bureau of Labor Statistics released November employment data today. The media is calling it a “solid U.S. employment report”, with most of the job categories increasing. The main statistic, total nonfarm employment, increased 211,000. This is 111,000 more than what Janet Yellen reportedly wanted to see to justify a momentous 0.25 Fed funds rate hike.
The “solid report” has some not-so-solid features, however.
Rothbard on Libertarian Populism
Libertarian strategy has always been a vexing topic. Presidential election years, filled with statist campaign rhetoric, tend to cause existential pain and a reexamination of the fundamental question before us: What must be done to reduce the size and scope of the state? How can we realistically create a more libertarian society here and now, given the resources available and the range of tactical options?
Will Brazil Impeach Rousseff?
A few years ago, in 2009, The Economist magazine published an issue with its front cover showing a picture of the statue of Christ the Redeemer, one of the main symbols of Brazil, taking off like a rocket. This symbolized the country’s growing economy. The title of the article read “Brazil takes off.” However, in 2013, the same magazine published another issue with its front cover showing a picture of the statue going down like a misfired rocket. The title of the main article asked “Has Brazil blown it?” Yes. It blew it.
Bitcoin, the Regression Theorem, and the Emergence of a New Medium of Exchange
Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics 18, no. 3 (Fall 2015)
ABSTRACT: A recent controversy has brewed over whether or not the emergence of bitcoin, as a new medium of exchange, is in accordance with Mises’s regression theorem. The main question in the debate seems to be, is bitcoin valued in direct use?
Review of Patent Trolls: Predatory Litigation and the Smothering of Innovation by William J. Watkins, Jr.
Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics 18, no. 3 (Fall 2015)
It wouldn’t be a stretch to compare patent trolls to the playground bully, initiating scare tactics to gain control and in the case of the trolls, revenue. Following Bill Shughart’s informative foreword, William Watkins packs a good amount of information into his book about patent trolls.
