Republican interventionists, along with many would-be imperialists of the political left, have recently criticized “isolationists of the right” for opposing the American attempt to become a world empire. What these critics don’t understand is that America can never be what they want it to be. The United States is institutionally incapable of
SANTIAGO:--Nearly 400 of the world’s freedom-minded economists met for the 33rd bi-annual reunion of the Mt. Pelerin Society . Started in 1947 by Friedrich von Hayek and 35 others including Ludwig von Mises, it remains a meeting place for many of their intellectual descendents. The meeting was hosted by Chile’s Institute for Liberty and
It’s a statistic that should spark outrage in anyone that chooses to fly. Over half of all flights in the U.S. are not on time. Is this possible? How can airlines get away with this? Shouldn’t competition in the airline industry weed out these chronically late offenders? The answer is, competition would do this, if the airline industry were truly
Republican Richard M. Nixon closed the gold window Aug. 15, 1971, breaking the last monetary link with the precious metal. During the next three decades, prices as measured by the CPI more than quadrupled, or, put another way, the value of the U.S. dollar has fallen to 24 cents. Meanwhile, the dollar has lost more than two-thirds of its value
At the height of the Vietnam War, a war most Americans either want to forget or not learn about in the first place, a search and destroy mission was captured on film. A young American lieutenant and his patrol took a Vietnamese village, then, noting the Vietcong had been using it for months, ordered it burned to the ground. He explained to CBS
Recently, one of my lords and masters on the Potomac sent me a letter. Social Security Commissioner Kenneth S. Apfel wrote to say that, “We are pleased to send this Social Security Statement to help you understand what Social Security means to you and your family.” I’m glad someone is “pleased.” Looking at the record of my payroll taxes over 30
One of the great economic puzzles of our time is the international strength of the U.S. dollar, the huge U.S. trade deficits notwithstanding. Many observers view the situation with alarm and expect the exchange rate of the dollar to fall soon under the weight of an unfavorable balance of trade. Others look upon the situation with pride and
The barriers to international trade continue to fall, and “globalization” is moving ahead. According to the World Trade Organization (WTO), the volume of trade is increasing at an annual rate of more than 6 percent, now exceeding $5 trillion. Some 60,000 “transnational” companies with more than 500,000 foreign affiliates are investing annually
The ever-growing budget surplus of the U.S. Government is exciting the spending instincts of most politicians. It stirs their passions and encourages them to find and concoct new spending programs that will tap into the surplus. In defense of their position and income, most politicians are ever eager to take as much money as possible from
Reading an individual’s balance of payments is very revealing. By comparing the income and the expenses of an individual, we can determine the position he or she occupies in economic life. The income ledger discloses not only the height of income but also its various sources. There may be labor income from services we render to our fellowmen, or
What is the Mises Institute?
The Mises Institute is a non-profit organization that exists to promote teaching and research in the Austrian School of economics, individual freedom, honest history, and international peace, in the tradition of Ludwig von Mises and Murray N. Rothbard.
Non-political, non-partisan, and non-PC, we advocate a radical shift in the intellectual climate, away from statism and toward a private property order. We believe that our foundational ideas are of permanent value, and oppose all efforts at compromise, sellout, and amalgamation of these ideas with fashionable political, cultural, and social doctrines inimical to their spirit.