Homines libenter quod volunt credunt
Posted in Classical Liberalism on Feb 28th, 2009
Via David Henderson: A friend of his asked Hayek why people were so averse to the ideas of economic freedom. Hayek’s reply is timeless: One of the forms of private property that people cherish most is their ideas. If you convince them that their ideas are wrong, you have caused them to suffer a capital […]
Posted in Uncategorized on Feb 28th, 2009
I wonder if newspapers and pundits seek the “views” of historians, political scientists, artists, and economists about the temperature at which the sun burns? What follows is a very lengthy exchange between me and the editors of our student newspaper. The ultimate article in question can be found here (a pdf with pictures is here).
Posted in Flotsam and Jetsam on Feb 27th, 2009
L’Obama, ossia L’Avvento del Messia – Opera in Tre Atti
Posted in Corporatism, Socialism on Feb 26th, 2009
Our first glimpse is here. Some highlights (lowlights): Spending $2.4 trillion on “health care” by Americans is not enough. And apparently neither is spending an additional $1.2 trillion to get the uninsured covered. Read closely how he intends to spend that money. And this is all before he turns the entire health system into Mediscare. […]
Posted in You Can't Have it Both Ways on Feb 26th, 2009
I summarize via Greg Mankiw: Tim Geithner to China: “Stop manipulating your currency. You are keeping its value too low. When you do that, it makes Americans want to take dollars and buy Chinese goods that they otherwise would not want to buy. We don’t like how you do it … you “sell” your currency […]
Posted in Government Gone Wild on Feb 26th, 2009
Think again. Obama mentioned “universal accounts” in his coverage of social security last night and I am surprised the blogosphere has not picked up on this more. This is probably Gene Sperling’s idea and the key question is how much is “carve out” from existing benefits and how much is “add on.” In any case […]
Posted in Economic Illiteracy, Socialism on Feb 25th, 2009
My wife is smart to advise me not to watch things like a Presidential address to Congress, both because of the nonsense in the actual speech, but also because of the fawning the press does over this “great American tradition” and how wonderful it is to have all of these dignitaries in the same room. […]
Posted in Economic Illiteracy on Feb 25th, 2009
Hey, we seem to want to do one better than China in everything these days … so let’s see how our new commitments in energy, health care, and education (i.e. paying off the unions) turn out as compared to this:… The National Stadium, known as the Bird’s Nest, has only one event scheduled for this […]
Posted in Money on Feb 25th, 2009
Can we learn something from how a nearly laissez-faire economic system would deal with a banking crisis? Of course. One reform I would make if I were President would be to eliminate the unlimited liability of ownership of financial firms (and firms in some other sectors), and perhaps subject their corporate charters to renewal every […]
Posted in Flotsam and Jetsam on Feb 24th, 2009
An update on the progress of the “Freedom Tower.” By the way, over 1 million square feet of space will be leased by government agencies. Completion is scheduled for 2011-2012.