“Middle-class families shouldn’t pay higher taxes than millionaires and billionaires,” repeatedly proclaims President Obama, arguing for his proposed $1.5 trillion tax increase over the next 10 years. “That’s pretty straightforward. It’s hard to argue against that.” In fact, Mr. Obama’s statement is anything but straightforward. Seeking to reverse
You knew it was coming. First they came for the cigarettes, then Hank Williams Jr. got knocked off Monday Night Football for being politically incorrect, and now they’re coming for the butter. Denmark, on October 1, put a $1.29-per-pound tax on all foods that hit 2.3 percent in saturated fats. That’s on top of a 25 percent surcharge imposed last
Today’s crop of central planners and big-spending politicians could learn a thing or two about economics from Henry Hazlitt’s classic bestseller, Economics in One Lesson , published in 1946. Common sense doesn’t have an expiration date. “There is no more persistent and influential faith in the world today than faith in government spending,”
The good news is that Americans’ distrust of government is at its highest level ever. It’s good news because it shows the public recognizes how poorly we’re being governed. Not much good comes out of trusting people who shouldn’t be trusted — not much good comes out of reelecting them, either. Only 9 percent of Americans approve of the way
“Congress can raise its own official debt ceiling, but it cannot change the economic laws concerning the real effects of its policies on our lives.” The recent downgrading of federal credit by Standard & Poors and Egan-Jones reflects concern over mounting federal debts. While there are good reasons to doubt the long-term solvency of the federal
David Frum recently accused modern Hayekians of not having a policy response to the recent economic crisis. According to Frum, Keynesians have the solutions that people want: namely, activist policies to restore demand and employment. Hayekians allegedly rail against the straw man of central planning. There are two problems with Frum’s argument.
The latest data on unemployment show little improvement in economic conditions. The official unemployment rate is down slightly to 9.1 percent from 9.2 percent in June: Some of the facts regarding unemployment are clear. Net increases in jobs were small, but more importantly labor-force participation declined. According to Bureau of Labor
“Efforts to change the results of market competition will entail unintended consequences.” Barack Obama recently declared that if a Republican wins the next election, Americans will be “on their own.” Government protection from things like pollution, hidden fees, and foreclosure will disappear, and people will not be able to rely on others to pay
Political Scientist and MSNBC contributor Mellissa Harris-Perry has called for renewed faith in Democracy. According to Harris-Perry, recent events have damaged public confidence in the democratic process. Our faith has been badly damaged by governors who crush unions, by a Congress that will not govern, by a military that tortures, by CEOs who
Comedian Chris Rock has a routine where he says, You know the world is going crazy when the best rapper is a white guy, the best golfer is a black guy, the tallest guy in the NBA is Chinese, the Swiss hold the America’s Cup, France is accusing the US of arrogance, Germany doesn’t want to go to war, and the three most powerful men in America are
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.