The true lesson from Japan is that central planners prefer to gradually nationalize the economy before even considering a moderate reduction in government size and control.
British politics could potentially be very different next year, but a recent shortlist of candidates to replace Mark Carney doesn't provide much hope for Austrians.
Trade agreements have thus become obsolete tokens of negotiation in larger geopolitical disputes, protectionist tools for managing and interfering with global trade flows.
Had consumers in 1938 been uninterested in a feature-length cartoon, Snow White would have bankrupted the Disney studio. Instead, Walt Disney was richly rewarded for his risk-taking.
China is not on track to catch up with the wealthy West. The Chinese state's commitment to highly interventionist mercantilist policies is leading to debt, malinvestment, and stagnation.
So long as we insist the federal government can force one law, one culture, and one sort of politics on all of America, the US is headed down the road of civil war. Only decentralization and separation can partly defuse the situation.
