Inflation Destroys Savings
[Excerpted from Ludwig von Mises on Money and Inflation: A Synthesis of Several Lectures, compiled by Bettina Bien Greaves. This lecture was given at the Foundation for Economic Education (FEE).]
Boom or Bust?
To paraphrase Mark Twain, it’s a difference of opinion that makes a horse race. And for most people the most critical race of all is to amass sufficient assets to live a comfortable retirement.
Taxpayer-Financed Sports Stadiums: Deals Benefit Teams, Not Public
No taxpayer money was needed to construct the Las Vegas Motor Speedway or the arenas at various casinos. Funding to build a baseball stadium should be no different.
Freakonomics
Doug French reviews the hit economics book Freakonomics.
City of the Bubble
Las Vegas is one big bubble, writes Doug French. Sin City’s brand name has never been hotter.
Condo-mania
Apartment conversions are all the rage in Las Vegas. Anyone looking for an entry-level priced home in a nice area will likely be relegated to buying what amounts to be — an old apartment.
More than 17,000 apartment units in Las Vegas are to be converted into condos, according to Dennis Smith, president of Home Builders Research. Approximately 7,500 are currently on the market, with another 10,000 to be converted by year-end.
Empire of Debt
It is hard to know when the empire and its bubbles will collapse. Bill Bonner and Addison Wiggin don’t pretend to know. But, Empire of Debt makes the wait more fun.
Party of One
They just don’t make statesmen the way they used to, writes Doug French. Every week a new revelation comes to light about some senator or congressman’s ethical transgressions.
Shark Attack
The city of Las Vegas is young, having just celebrated its 100th birthday. An old money aristocracy has not yet taken root. Back east, the JP Morgans and Henry Fords are long gone, leaving bloated corporations and reclusive trust fund babies behind. But, this town’s movers and shakers mix amongst the hoi polloi. If you go to Drai’s for dinner, Steve Wynn and his wife Elaine might be dining in the next booth. You might see Kirk Kerkorian dining at Piero’s, or Sheldon Adelson at Kona Grill.
Publicly Funded Sex
Do you ever wonder what all of those tax dollars you send to Washington D.C. pay for? In a fit of wishful thinking, your mind’s eye conjures up images of hard-working people giving their all each and every day serving taxpayers. After all there must be so much work to do, these dedicated public servants must be eating brown bag lunches at their desks and spending many a night burning the midnight oil. Not hardly.
Washington is full of thousands of people doing little of nothing: All on the taxpayers’ dime.
