Zoning is theft, pure and simple. In his fantastic introduction to the Austrian School, Economics for Real People , Gene Callahan correctly identifies eminent domain as a form of property theft, especially noting the use of government condemnation in order to secure rightfully owned property for commercial development. It is easy to see government
For generations, products have advertised themselves as “new and improved.” We are too quick to dismiss this phrase as a promotional boilerplate. The market really does generate unrelenting improvements in our living standards. Meanwhile, the public sector is forever promising to improve its services and products, but every attempt creates only
The vanity of pride hides the true reflected man. But every now and again an event will occur that straightens out the distortions and exposes one’s real identity. One such event happened to me at a meeting between officials of a local city and the school district I serve as a board member. Before the call to the table, as members of both
[ This weekend: The Mises Institute in Manhattan!] Is your state’s economy in the doldrums? Does it need a kick start to get it humming again? The immediate and boring solution is reduced government regulations and tax cuts. But according to a new civic ethos, the long-term and innovative solution is mandatory, all-day kindergarten. That’s rights,
Most of us would never think of asking our neighbors to foot a personal bill. We accept responsibility for car and roof repairs as ours alone. In addition, we don’t bang on the door across the street in order to demand a contribution towards our children’s figure skating lessons, taekwondo classes, etc. That which is consumed or used by our
We tend to assume that without an interventionist government, life would fall into chaos. Nothing could be farther from the truth. In the nineteenth century, French economist Frédéric Bastiat remarked on the wonder of that phenomenon by exclaiming, “Paris gets fed!” The same can be said of New York, Tokyo, Mexico City, etc. It’s doesn’t take the
A philosophical divide between classic liberalism and the political forms now in vogue is manifest in the phrase, “Let’s agree to disagree.” To the classic liberal, this means we agree to end our discussion, debate, or argument and go about our separate ways. The phrase is the end as such. Certainly the classic liberal may engage the next person
As immigration reform debates continue to heat up Washington and rankle the folks on talk radio and cable, in barber shops, and throughout the Web, we need to remember similar incidents throughout our history. As each new wave of immigrants entered the US, false crises were created and used to crackdown on the newcomers and expand government. My
AOL News is reporting that Daryl Hannah and others were arrested trying to stop a landowner from developing his Los Angeles property. Squatters have been using Ralph Horowitz’s 14 acres to grow crops while he “was paying $25,000 to $30,000 a month in mortgage and other land costs.” None of the protestors, including Hannah, Willie Nelson, or Danny
AOL News (AP) reports on a market solution to rising gas prices : buy gas now and store it for later. That’s right; create your own strategic oil reserve! One lucky prospector is tapping the 99 cents a gallon gas that he has stored in his private reserve. What a deal! What a solution! The market always creates solutions for economic issues. Saving
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.