This summer’s City Journal exposes Union U , the latest bogus discipline masquerading as a university department, as if appending the word “studies” to a political advocacy program makes it an subject worthy of academic study. These programs, funded either by state universities or labor unions, give students credit for union organizing and teach
The two housing GSEs (government-sponsored enterprises) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, dominate the mortgage finance sector. They operate on tremendous amounts of leverage and they exposed to swings in their asset and liabilitiy values if interest rates move. They claim to have hedged their interest rate risk through derivatives, but even if that
In an effort to keep their currencies from rising against the dollar, mercantilist governments in Asia are continuing to purchase vast amounts of dollars. The situation is unsustainable in the opinion of Chris Wood of CSLA (part of an Austrian-oriented group of market strategists at that firm). So reports the Asia Times . “So long as America
Fox News reviews “a terrific new book by Washington Post reporter Cindy Skrzycki ( search ) called The Regulators: Anonymous Power Brokers in American Politics , ( Rowman & Littlefield, 2003.)”. According to the review the book makes the point that there are a lot of regulations and that they are difficult for businesses to comply with. The
The GSEs, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, are quasi-public entities that purchase home mortgages from banks and either hold them or package them and re-sell them as mortgage-backed securities. Their profits accrue to their shareholders and well-compensated executives, while they enjoy low borrowing costs due to the implied backing of the US
On page 1 of today’s Wall Street Journal (available on their subscriber site), there is a story about the lack of any congressional action in light of the recent accounting scandal at Freddie which led to the forced resignation of its top management. Fannie and Freddie are quasi-”privatized” corporations that enjoy a substantial government
I hate to keep linking to these stories on a paid site because not everyone subscribes, but this one was too good. According to a Wall Street Journal story, Some frustrated dieters are doing what once would have been unthinkable -- eating more to gain pounds to qualify for weight-loss surgery. While celebrities like singer Carnie Wilson and
An article in the Seattle Times , Low interest rates lure young renters to homeownership , provides some insight into how the home market can be rising while the rental market is falling. Low interest rates. It also does a good job of repeating all of the usual fallacies about home ownership: “I’ve just been spending my money for the last 10
In this article, Silver - The Undervalued Asset Looking for a Catalyst , financial analyst Jim Puplava presents his analysis of why the prices of silver and gold will move higher as the financial system lurches toward a crisis. He draws upon the monetary and business cycle theories of Murray Rothbard in his analysis of how fiat money inflation
According to this article by Bloomberg reporter William Pesek, Asian investors, who own a huge amount of agency debt, are getting worried about the soundness of Fannie and Freddie. Freddie has recently been rocked by an accounting scandal. In spite of the denials by Fannie and Freddie that their securities are government-guaranteed, the Asian
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.