Mises Wire

The COVID-19 panic has provided a myriad of opportunities for politicians to exploit the fear and pain of ordinary people for personal profit.

Crashes are fast, like that first hill on a coaster. Recoveries are not, for the simple reason that production is more difficult than destruction.

Why would an investor buy a bond that pays a negative interest rate? The answer lies in understanding how central banks manipulate the economy.

Presenting "saving lives" as a more or less equal alternative to commerce and community is a misguided view of what the lockdown debate is really all about.

Rather than spurring real economic gains, the Federal Reserve’s unorthodox QE program has supported and extended the debt grid and generated asset exuberance. But this can only go on as long as there's capacity for more debt.

How do the shutdowns increase ageism? Because millions have arguably been thrown out of work in the name of protecting the elderly. The resulting economic devastation comes at the expense of younger workers, parents, students, and families.

Prices of consumer goods have grown rather slowly in spite of sizable money supply growth. Why is there a gap?

While the Left has agitated for more government spying and harsher "lockdowns," Brazil's president—perhaps fearing economic implosion—has been reluctant to crack down.

The eurozone needs to understand that if it decides to increase taxes to address the rising debt due to the COVID-19 response, its ability to recover will be irreparably damaged.

If organizations like the Federal Reserve and governments were forced to compete in a real economy, they would have been forced to declare bankruptcy, reorganize, and split up into smaller pieces long ago.