The first thing one must notice about the “Occupy” organization is that they have little interest in the details of a nation’s problems or those of the world. It is, in one word, an entirely “fake” grassroots movement, led by professional organizers that were hired by a billionaire in the service of market and...
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I can’t help but notice that the new wave of Tea Party Republicans, said to be on probation until they’ve proven themselves, have quickly circled their wagons to defend the established RINO culture. To make the point, we might as well start with the extremely popular young senator Rand Paul. But if you’re paying...
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In the neoconservative vision, a constant state of alarm must be fostered among the people to keep them focused on something greater than themselves-- namely their great protector, the state.
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The Japanese government has kept unprofitably invested capital in place with fiscal and monetary stimulus as well as central bank policy that continues to keep bad debt frozen on the books of zombie banks.
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America needs a Lincoln, not another committee of Fillmores.
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Tragically, the Fed appears to have learned little from its mistakes. Its current policy of “quantitative easing†continues its long tradition of creating bubbles by deliberately implementing inflationary policies.
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Is it still called “disruptive climate changeâ€Â? I’m no longer trying to keep up with changing preferences in terminology. Cow dung by any other name still stinks. Let’s encapsulate the new, nEW, NEW!!! global warming “science†argument and see why realists are losing. If you’ve been reading lately, you’ll know that all the little...
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It has been almost 50 years since Milton Friedman, Nobel economist, released his classic, Capitalism and Freedom. The book has slowly slipped from my course syllabus, not to mention that of the political elite. And why not? What Friedman said is now obvious. Surely, Americans, given the indisputable superiority of the free market over...
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Washington’s stunning economic power grabsâ€â€healthcare centralization, Keynesian fiscal stimulus, and Federal Reserve bailoutsâ€â€are creating an unintended consequence: an increasing demand for freedom literature. Exhibit A would have to be F.A. Hayek’s 66-year-old Road to Serfdom’s recently hitting number one for all books on Amazon.com.Those desiring an even deeper education in the ideas of liberty...
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Like a banana republic, we have allowed a self-serving political class to spend tax dollars and borrowed funds to “buy†popularity and take us to the brink of national bankruptcy.
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I’m now convinced that the Obama administration is placing its political agenda above policies that would contribute to the economic recovery that millions of Americans so desperately need. That agenda includes bringing more economic activity under government control, making more people dependent on government, and, generally, redistributing wealth.I have come to this conclusion after...
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The grand lesson of the 20th century is that Big Government retards economic progress.The evidence of this lesson goes beyond the socialist countries and their dramatic economic failures. Several decades ago, as a young economist, I encountered repeated studies that showed a high correlation between two macroeconomic phenomena: The larger the government’s share of...
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Warmers and Democrats are once again getting overheated by their own propaganda; claiming 2010 is the hottest year on record. The current Cap-n-Trade promotional reads something like this (from The Hill blogs): The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reported Thursday that the January-June period was the warmest worldwide on record, based on average...
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The International Monetary Unit -- the IMU -- is coming. Gold is going up, and the dollar is going down. The New World Order is ascendant.
And if you aren't completely underwater yet, you will be.
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It’s easy to be overwhelmed by the bewildering array of economic data, statistics, charts, and graphs floating around. Often, we economists can’t see the forest for the trees. It’s hard to figure out what is truly significant and what is background noise. Having made that disclaimer, I offer some data that merit your contemplation....
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If you read the financial press or listen to what politicians say, you have probably heard many times how important it is for the Chinese renminbi (yuan) to strengthen against the dollar. Indeed, it sometimes sounds as though a weaker dollar is the key to a prosperous economic future for Americans. Nonsense!Let’s look at...
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Management 101 As oil in the Gulf of Mexico continues to gush, many Americans have ceased gushing over President Obama, mysteriously surprised he is functioning as a left-wing ideologue with no management competence. Why the surprise? This is akin to being shocked that Miami in July is humid. The red flags were evident from...
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The housing market is the most recent of many examples of the failure of Obama’s stimulus plans to revive the economy by repealing principles of human economic behavior. Predictably, the still vastly overbuilt and over-supplied housing market drops dead, as it should, when not artificially supported by socialistic government subsidies. The Wall Street Journal...
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Calling for a balanced budget amendment has been a staple campaign issue for conservative Republicans for years. Undeniably, our nation is beset by fearful fiscal woes. However, a balanced budget amendment isn’t the answer.Let me emphasize that I endorse a balanced budget in principle. Indeed, in my recent article, “Good Cop, Bad Cop,” I...
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Freedom Isn’t Free Each year, we observe Memorial Day — formerly Decoration Day, rooted in post-Civil War times — which officially became a federal holiday in 1971. What’s all the fuss? Most people view Memorial Day as the official start of summer, a time to party. Given that US school children know more about...
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