America’s financial situation is precarious. Over the past 8 years our national debt has doubled to $14.5 trillion and our total unfunded liabilities now exceed an astonishing $114 trillion. That’s $1,115,000 per federal income tax payer. Even the most unrepentant...
Amit Ghate
Stop the Assault on our Public Markets
In a widely-circulated NY Times column (Jan 13, 2009), Bob Herbert proposes a 0.25% transaction tax on every stock trade. If this idea, which has been garnering support among politicians, passes into law, it will mark another devastating -- perhaps fatal -- blow...
Let Them Fail
Everywhere today politicians are blaring that they must save America's financial institutions, alleging catastrophic risk to the economy were any to fail. Paulson and the entire Bush administration, in a discernible panic, are now pouring $700 billion into the big...
In Defense of Speculators and Short-Sellers
Everywhere today government bureaucrats and media pundits blame unwanted price movements on speculators and short-sellers. If prices are "too high"--it's the fault of greedy speculators; if prices are "too low"--it's the work of evil short-sellers. To hear these...
How Not to Fight Religious Fundamentalism: Andrew Sullivan on Faith
A friend of mine recently recommended that I read an Andrew Sullivan article in the Oct 9th issue of Time magazine entitled When Not Seeing is Believing. He found it to be a good article showing that Time was now coming around and taking strong steps towards combating...
The Islamist Threat To Civilization
In reacting to the Islamists’ ongoing cartoon Jihad, most commentators have focused on the issue of free speech. This is natural, and necessary, since eradication of free speech is the most immediate risk; and certainly without free speech there can be no defending...
What Can One Do About The Latest Islamic Attack on Western Values
Several friends have asked me what they can do in response to the latest Islamic attack on free speech and Western values. I have a few thoughts, but would very much welcome additional suggestions from readers. To begin, I note that the West already has all the...
Democracy and the Right to Vote
From claims that we've won the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq simply because locals there can now vote, to recent "Get Out the Vote" campaigns, our leaders -- democrats and republicans alike -- consistently imply that the most fundamental American political idea is that...
Fallacy of Self-Exclusion
For several years now, Research In Motion (makers of the blackberry) and NTP have been embroiled in an intellectual property dispute wherein NTP claims that RIM is infringing some of its patents. As part of the dispute NTP was granted an injunction against RIM which...
Ostracism
Earlier this year, when the Ward Churchill essay became news, my initial reaction was that he should be charged with a crime such as ‘treason’ or ‘aiding and abetting the enemy’. But through discussion with friends, I realized my reaction was wrong, and that his...
Greek Honor: A Monumental Achievement
I’ve been reading some of the Greek historians, and am struck by how different the general attitude of the Greeks was compared to that of the modern world’s. What stands out most is the pride they show in living morally. I suppose the contrast is so stark because,...
Recycling
I wanted to share a few of my thoughts on a posting from Daniel Schwartz’s blog in which he discusses recycling. The post in question begins: “While I do not know enough about economics in general or the economics ofwaste disposal in particular to have staked out a...
Defending the Separation of Church and State: A Call to Liberals
If the liberals truly wish to maintain the separation of Church and State (and its corollary – intellectual freedom), then they must reverse their antagonism to individual rights, and join us, the capitalists, in championing for a return to the original American form of government, i.e. to a constitutional republic enacted to protect the full and consistent individual rights of all.
Bill Amendment: Just Another Veiled Attack on Private Property
The recently passed amendment to the Senate's Sarbanes bill preventing corporations from making loans to their officers is just another step in the socialization of private property in America -- and must be fought on that basis. The concept of property inherently...
Eliminate Double Taxation of Dividends
In attacking the credibility of many public companies' financial statements, and calling for yet more stringent regulations, the U.S. government claims to champion the small investor; but in reality its own dividend taxation policy is largely to blame for the problem...
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