In his first inaugural address, Lincoln said he had no intention of disturbing slavery, and he appealed to all his past speeches to any who may have doubted him. But with the tariff it was different, notes Thomas DiLorenzo. Lincoln was willing to launch an invasion that would ultimately cost the lives of 620,000 Americans to prove his point.
One of the enduring myths about Washington, D.C., is that the political classes can be--or at least want to be--educated about economic matters. Individuals and foundations have sunk millions of dollars into “think tanks” and seminars, all in hopes of teaching basic concepts of economics to those who are in positions of political leadership.
Mark Thornton shows that George Lucas is taking bits and pieces of our own historical experience to retell a battle between good and evil that also touches on themes in political economy, particularly the choice between self-determination (essential to freedom) and imperialism (linked to war and state expansion).
Social Security is not an insurance program. A Social Security “account” bears no legal resemblance whatsoever to a bank checking or saving account. Social Security bestows no contractual rights or any other type of property right on workers. In other words, Social Security as it is currently structured has nothing to do with legally enforceable promises or guarantees.
Think of a Red Delicious apple. It is the poster-child for the apple family, perfect for a teacher’s desk, a kid’s lunchbox, or bobbing in the autumn. I don’t know anyone who has actually ever bobbed for apples, but plenty of people buy Red Delicious. And I don’t know why.
Red Delicious is to apples what Milwaukee’s Best is to beer, what Boone’s Farm is to wine, and what the McNugget is to poultry. They are mealy, thick-skinned, and bland. In Asia the Red Delicious is nicknamed “snake fruit.”
The “leftist slant” of the mainstream news media in the United States tends to be in the eye of the beholder. For example, when former CBS correspondent Bernard Goldberg claimed in his recent book Bias that mainstream news figures such as Dan Rather and others demonstrated outward leftist sentiments, the attacks upon him by his former colleagues were fierce and unremitting. Goldberg is a pariah in his business, and the denials by media figures continue.
The only real solution to negative-attack politics is to reduce the power and scope of government over our lives.
Richard Ebeling writes: The rejection of totalitarian and authoritarian regimes around the world has represented a rebirth of the ideal of the democratic order. It is important to remember, however, that “self-government” can mean and has meant two different, but complementary ideals.
