Mises Wire

Three months ago, the CEO of Gravity Payments, a Seattle credit card processing firm, announced that all of the firm’s employees would be paid a minimum of $70,000 a year. Now, the firm has fallen on hard times.

The online tech and science magazine Verge recently published an essay on the economic and political impact of disruptive ride-sharing startup Uber: Uber can't be stopped. So what happens next? Whereas one might expect an online tech magazine like Verge, itself part of a wave of disruptive publishing efforts, to be optimistic about innovative tech initiatives, the essay offers a surprisingly bleak, pessimistic, and politicized “analysis.”

Apparently, Verge sees mostly problems with Uber’s challenging of the privileged and guild-based taxi business.

Boston joins a growing number of cities where the taxpayers decided they didn't want to deal with the massive costs of hosting the Olympic games. As a bastion of crony capitalism, however, the games are still quite popular among politicians and business "leaders."

Bernie Sanders says immigrants are "taking our jobs" and that the state must act to "help [American] poor people." Predictably, Sanders's "solution" is to give more power to the same government that has created the very problems Sanders identifies with too much immigration.

Despite the problems that bedevil comprehensive political plans, there is one central plan that can benefit all members of a society (except for predators on others) -- the joint protection of everyone’s private property. As Locke pointed out, and many of America’s founders echoed, that is the only thing government’s coercive power can do that can make all citizens better off.

In other words, “don’t ever violate others’ rights” is adequately comprehensive for extensive, successful social cooperation. But it is comprehensive only in spelling out what no one can do to others without their consent. It imposes no limits on what individuals can create voluntarily with and for others, a far cry from the political delineation and delegation of privileges to some and duties to others. And it is far superior in both ethical and economic terms to legislation or regulations that are supposedly comprehensive, yet routinely violate citizens’ rights.

In certain contexts, an animal can be of little use or a nuisance, as in the case of a lion or elephant running unrestrained. On the other hand, the private market has done a lot of good work in providing more sanctuary for animals through private sector eco-tourism by placing animals into situations where they are valuable rather than destructive.

Chris Christie, who unbeknownst to virtually everyone is running for President, has announced that, if he becomes president, he will make sure that

Eric Peters reminds us of why customers don’t have a choice when

Jeff and Bob discuss his new book, Choice: Cooperation, Enterprise, and Human Action, Bob's new opportunity at Texas Tech University, and all things Bob Murphy.

Valiant Hearts is the rare game that combines engaging gameplay with a compelling narrative and a strongly anti-war message.