Myths of the Mixed Economy
This piece from 1992 was lost in the shuffle. Here I discuss the strange vogue of the planned society in the 1930s, when academics freely linked FDR, Mussolini, Keynes, and Stalin—with praise for all!
Gordon Guest Blogging at Organizations and Markets
For those who can’t get enough of David Gordon — and, really, who can? — he’s guest blogging over at Organizations and Markets.
Why Libertarians Should Care about “Defense”
Drinking Builds Social Capital
From the Forbes blog: Good news for those of us who enjoy the occasional (or maybe even frequent) after work cocktail: tipping back a few can help fill your wallet. Drinkers earn 10 to 14% more money at their jobs than nondrinkers - and men who drink socially, visiting a bar at least once a month, bring home an additional 7% in pay, according to a new study.
Causation, Spam, and Worms
Hackers Jailed for Zotob Worm Attack provides an illustration of how the crime of trespass can be committed remotely by computer means, such as, in this case, by “creating and distributing the Zotob worm that squirmed through Windows 2000 networks in August 2005.” Likewise, as argued here, spam can also be considered to be a form of trespass against property rights.
Should An Economist Analyze Housing?
The conventional wisdom (i.e. what my dad and his buddies would tell me) is that, so long as you have decent credit and plan to stay in the area for a few years, it is crazy not to buy a house (rather than rent) because you can deduct the interest on your mortgage. Especially in the first few years, when you are paying tens of thousands in interest payments, that tax advantage equals hundreds or even thousands of dollars in extra take home pay per month.
Liberty on Immigration
Liberty Magazine‘s October issue has two very powerful, provocative pieces on immigration, by Stephen Cox and Bruce Ramsey. Cox’s especially presents an unusually forthright, honest, and open libertarian case against unlimited immigration.
We could let you be free, but you’d just screw it up
Via Scotland: sometimes the simplest arguments for taking away freedom are the scariest:
Profit and Loss
Who Captures Whom? The Case of Regulation
The Chicago School of economics favored and still favors the theory of “regulatory capture,” writes Michael Rozeff. Under this theory, an industry or some portions of an industry cultivate government to obtain laws and rules that favor the industry. The government trades favors for what it wants. But there is more to the story. The government not only baits the trap; it also attempts to crush market substitutes that spring up in response to quality declines.
