True Libertarianism
Words fail me in my attempt to say how much I welcome this book. This is a brilliant, magnificent book.
The Form of Saving Matters
By focusing on broader aggregates such as “supply and demand for money,” the free bankers are overlooking important issues — such as who gets the extra funding from fractional-reserve banking.
GLD Tops $50 Billion
SPDR Gold Trust has surpassed the monumental $50 billion mark in terms of assets (gold).
Recognizing that gold is a long-term investment which may stabilize wealth by mitigating the risk of falls in other asset classes, investors in GLD have made it one of the fastest growing ETFs globally. As of June 25, 2010, assets under management in the trust totaled more than $53 billion, making it the second largest ETF by assets in the world
Misesian vs. Marxian vs. IP Views of Innovation
BK Marcus drew my attention to this passage from Mises’s Theory and History that illustrates that Mises really understood the subject of innovation, and that his view contrasts with both the Marxian view (impersonal forces) and the IP view (innovation is a result of ex nihilo creations by isolated idea owners). As usual, the Misesian perspective offers a middle way:
Ending the Euro Monopoly with Currency Competition
The London “Daily Telegraph” columnist, Ambrose Evan-Pritchard reported in an article on July 7,that the Dutch financial company, ING, has done a study that the possible collapse of the Euro currency would be a catastrophe for the European and world Economies.
Let’s just shut down all progress using copyright and patent
Here is a weekend code writer who was hammered by a corporate correspondent who warned him not to release his free product because it would infringe on a legal monopoly. The whole thing is a disgrace. Just a disgrace. It further demonstrates how it would be possible to shut down the whole world using patent lawsuits. Folks, the criminals are in control of the law.
Repeal the Drinking Age
Somehow, and no one seems to even imagine how, this country managed to survive and thrive before 1984 without a national minimum drinking age.
Where Are All the Commerical Foreclosures?
We’ve seen plenty of them in the totally ravaged markets like Las Vegas of course, but some have begun to wonder where all the commercial foreclosures are? We don’t hear about a lot of foreclosures in apartment buildings, for example. Well, apartment buildings won’t foreclosure in large numbers, because, as a substitute good for for-sale housing, rental housing is quite helpful.
Parallel Lives: Liberty or Power?
All the money and power we can gain will be useless to us after we die. Even large fortunes can dissipate after a generation or two. The legacy we leave on this earth comes down to the principles by which we lived.
The GSE Disaster
The bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac has now cost the taxpayer at least 146 billion. By the end, the bailout will likely cost anywhere from $500 billion to $1 trillion. The damage done by Fannie and Freddie is not limited merely to the bailouts. Fannie and Freddie were the main engines behind the securitization drive that drove so much of the real estate bubble.
