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.
Obama’s Five Year Plan
President Obama wants US exports to double within five years. Indeed, “raising exports is a national priority.” Sounds like a Soviet Five Year Plan.
More exports are good, of course, but don’t think for a minute that Obama believes in free trade. He has created an Export Council to centrally plan his trade goal, increased tariffs on Chinese tires, doubled loans to support exports, and fought for “fair trade” at the WTO.
The Difference between History and Philosophy of History
[Excerpted from chapter 8 of Theory and History. An audio version of this article, excerpted from the forthcoming audiobook version, read by John Pruden.
Nonsense on the Deficit Question
Taxpayers are ultimately on the hook for the federal debt, regardless of financial finagling. And yet Galbraith acts as if adding trillions of dollars to the federal debt carries no strings at all.
Minnesota Government Mistreats Ladies
Minnesota’s recent crackdown on ladies’ night shows that the state’s politicians and economists cannot trace out the unseen effects of their own policies.
Exit through the Gift Shop
Those who create something of value to others will eventually find their work popularized and commercialized, escaping the creator as it takes on a life of its own.
The Nonviolent Black Market in Information
Unlike most black markets, the black market for information is characterized by peace and stability. There is a near-perfect harmony between the supply and the demand for movies, music, songs, and other digital content that falls under the control of intellectual-property legislation.
The Self-Defeat of the Keynesian Cross
The Austrian business-cycle theory, initiated by Ludwig von Mises and further developed and elaborated by F.A. Hayek, is by many considered the cornerstone of this school of thought. However, in 1998, Paul Krugman plainly dismissed the theory as not “worthy of serious study.”
Louis XIV: Apogee of Absolutism
[This article is excerpted from An Austrian Perspective on the History of Economic Thought, vol. 1, Economic Thought Before Adam Smith. An MP3 audio file of this article, read by Jeff Riggenbach, is available for download.]
