Economics and the Drug War by Bart Frazier July 1, 2009 It is becoming ever more apparent that the war on drugs has been lost. Doomed to fail from the moment of its inception, the war the U.S. government has been waging has not been against drugs, but against people and the laws of economics. The results have been violence, corruption, and a militarized society.
The Price of Freedom? by Christine Smith July 1, 2009 What is it to be born free and not to live free? — Henry David Thoreau, “Life Without Principle” “Freedom is not free” is a common phrase found in songs, in speeches, and on ribbons, and it’s the inscription ...
Economic Stimulus Nonsense by Scott McPherson July 1, 2009 When times are great — maybe especially when times are great — most people don’t think about economics. At least, if there’s any thinking going on at all, it’s not exactly clear-headed thinking. But when times take a turn for the worse, people forget about making any kind of sense at all. It would be far better if they ...
The Horror of Gun Control in Mumbai by Benedict D. LaRosa July 1, 2009 As Ronald Reagan would say, “Here we go again!” How many Rwanda, Columbine, Virginia Tech, Warsaw Ghetto, post-office, and other shootings do people have to endure before they face reality? How long does it take to learn a simple lesson: unarmed people are more vulnerable to terrorists, criminals, and crazed ...
Robbery and the Welfare State by George Leef July 1, 2009 Stealing from Each Other: How the Welfare State Robs Americans of Money and Spirit by Edgar K. Browning (Praeger, 2008); 226 pages. In the Sherlock Holmes story “Silver Blaze,” the key to Holmes’s solution of the case rested on something that didn’t happen — the dog that didn’t bark in ...
Gold and Freedom, Part 3 by Jacob G. Hornberger June 1, 2009 Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt were the two presidents most responsible for the abandonment of sound money in the United States. These two U.S. presidents opened the floodgates to the monetary debauchery under which today’s Americans have suffered for their entire lives. In waging war to prevent ...
Blame Republicans for Big Government by Sheldon Richman June 1, 2009 Government power is growing, and unless President Barack Obama and the majority in Congress have a libertarian epiphany, it will continue to grow for years. Obama’s 2010 budget will come in at more than $3.4 trillion, with a deficit of well over $1 trillion. Though the deficit will decline — if the administration’s dubious projections ...
The Post–9/11 Roundup of Innocents, Part 2 by James Bovard June 1, 2009 Part 1 | Part 2 In the weeks after the 9/11 attacks, the Bush administration constantly misrepresented how much power it was seeking over aliens. In a September 25 speech to FBI agents, Bush declared, “We’re asking Congress for the authority to hold suspected terrorists who are in the process of being deported until they’re deported.... We believe it’s ...
The Unemployment Racket by Laurence M. Vance June 1, 2009 Americans have many options when it comes to insurance. They can freely get health insurance, life insurance, cancer insurance, dental insurance, disability insurance, homeowners’ insurance, renters’ insurance, parcel-shipping insurance, et cetera. Although auto insurance is required by state laws, it is still obtained from a private insurance company of one’s choosing. One can even get insurance at the blackjack ...
Roosevelt’s Crusade against Gold by Jim Powell June 1, 2009 Early in the New Deal, Franklin Roosevelt became convinced that to get America out of the Great Depression, the federal government must gain total control over money. The Federal Reserve seemed to have been powerless during the contraction, so Roosevelt asserted the power of the presidency. He began demonizing gold. Why gold? For centuries, people have viewed gold as the ...
Hamilton’s Betrayal by George Leef June 1, 2009 Hamilton’s Curse: How Jefferson’s Archenemy Betrayed the American Revolution — and What It Means for America Today by Thomas J. DiLorenzo (Crown Forum 2008); 232 pages. There is a tendency among Americans to think of the nation’s Founders as a group of wealthy white men who owned property, didn’t like ...
Gold and Freedom, Part 2 by Jacob G. Hornberger May 1, 2009 Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 The Framers had experienced the ravages of paper money during the Revolutionary War and under the Articles of Confederation, and they were fully aware of how governments had plundered and looted their own citizenry with inflation throughout history. Therefore, the Framers used the Constitution to ensure ...