Valid moral principles should never be compromised because they are the guidelines for achieving our long-term self-interest, such as a profitable business
MARKETS
Central Banks Beat Up on Private Creditors
Last week the Greek government, with the heavy handed support of its larger friends in the Eurozone, succeeded in coercing some 85.8 percent of private sector bondholders to "voluntarily" exchange €206 billion-worth of Greek sovereign bonds for newer bonds with longer...
The “Limits” of Economic Progress
A few weeks ago I caught a portion of a radio program in which a commentator argued that economic progress has limits. He used a hamster as an example: For the first few weeks of his life, a hamster doubles in size each week. If he did this for a year, he would...
Why is Al Gore’s Call for “Sustainable Capitalism” Superfluous?
Al Gore claims that capitalism “has turned many of the world’s largest economies into hotbeds of irresponsible short-term investment.” He argues that capitalism causes business people to focus on short-term profit maximization which, allegedly, prevents sufficient...
Why Does Business Appease Its Critics?
Once you grant that profit making is shameful and business should “give [profits] back to society,” there is no end of claimants for the business’ profits.
A Solution to the Postal Crisis
Congress continues to fiddle while the United States Postal Service (USPS) burns. The union for postal employees is upset that the postmaster general wants to cut 35,000 jobs. Many Americans are upset that the USPS wants to close 3,700 post offices. The postmaster...
Free the Employers
Recent budget crises in Wisconsin, Indiana, and other states have unleashed a renewed debate over the power of unions and “right to work” laws. Unfortunately, both sides of the debate are guilty of numerous equivocations, misrepresentations, and errors. And, at the...
Inflation Held in Check by Fear
History has shown us time and again that out of control money supply expansion creates inflation. In light of the trillions of synthetic dollars that have been injected into the economy by the Federal Reserve over the past five years, most observers (this one...
Keynesians Jump the Gun on Inflation
Advocates of government stimulus are running victory laps on recent developments that appear to vindicate their strategy. In particular, Paul Krugman compares the sluggish growth in Europe to the somewhat-less-sluggish growth in the US to prove that stimulus was more...
Obama on Capital Gains: No Winners
“If you make more than $1 million a year, you should not pay less than 30 percent in taxes,” asserted President Obama in his State of the Union speech. For those with predominantly investment income, that would effectively double their capital gains tax...
The Law of Supply and Demand: Part II
A series of essays based on portions of Objective Economics: How Ayn Rand’s Philosophy Changes Everything About Economics by Northrup Buechner. In my previous posting on this subject, I noted that both the proponents and opponents of the law of supply and demand...
The "One Percent" We Should Really Fear
There is a great threat to medical care in America from a small group of our fellow citizens. They are not the top one percent of the wealthy, but a group of elitists and their allies who see government power as the means to determine what every American is allowed to...
Wary Investors Give US Stocks Another Go
Recently, the stock market has been roaring, with the S&P 500 up a stunning 22% from October 3, 2011, which was the low of last year. In fact, the first month of 2012 has been one of the best Januaries on record for US stocks. On top of that, last Friday's...
What Effect of Near Zero Interest Rates Until 2014 Have On The Economy?
With its announcement last week that it will keep interest rates near zero until at least late 2014, the Federal Reserve has put another large crack into the foundations underlying the US dollar. In a misguided attempt to provide clarity and transparency, Ben Bernanke...
Straightening Out the Strait
Recently some of the fears that investors had focused on in the 11th hour debt negotiations in Greece have drifted southeastward towards the Strait of Hormuz. An increasingly bellicose Iran threatens to throw the world economy into confusion with the potential closure...
They May Hate Capitalism, But They Sure Love To Loot It
Obama, Gingrich, Perry -- they all hate capitalism, but they sure like the loot it gives them to be the career politicians they are. Where would career politicians be without capitalism? Don’t kid yourselves. The liberal-statist agenda is to raise taxes on the...
It's the Spending, Stupid
Politicians like Mitt Romney and Barack Obama insist that there should be middle class tax cuts. Obama goes further and insists that these tax cuts be paid for by "the rich" (those making over $250,000 a year, his definition). The truth is that everyone is equally...
Fed Plays PR Games
The world was taken by surprise recently by the Federal Reserve Board's announcement that it would publish some of its economic forecasting that forms the basis for its short-term interest rate strategy. The Fed claims that the move will vastly increase so-called...
Who is the Real Barack Obama?
For most of his time as a national political figure, Barack Obama has been careful to cloak his core socialist leanings behind a veil of pro-capitalist rhetoric. This makes strategic sense, as Americans still largely identify as pro-capitalist. However, based on his...
Why Is The U.S. Dollar Rising Against The Euro?
Recent U.S. economic data, such as the modest drop in the unemployment rate and the massive expansion of consumer credit, have suggested that the American economy is finally recovering. Opposite conclusions are being thrown at Europe, where many are convinced that...
How The Economy Works
An excerpt from Objective Economics: How Ayn Rand’s Philosophy Changes Everything About Economics by Northrup Buechner. Here is the fundamental problem of economics: Every consumer good that you buy reaches you through the cooperation of literally...
Unions vs. “Right-to-work”
A number of conservatives, such as Senator Rand Paul, have been promoting “right-to-work” legislation in response to the growing power of labor unions. On the surface, such legislation might appear to be consistent with free market principles. But is it? Wikipedia...
2012 Offers Few Reasons for Optimism
As the year draws to a close, understandable confusion reigns in the minds of many investors. While short-term indicators, such as consumer confidence, appear to beckon recovery, the longer-term strategic issues remain shrouded in the smoke and mirrors of central bank...
No Courage To Face The Music in America or Europe
As the year draws to a close, understandable confusion reigns in the minds of many investors. While short-term indicators, such as consumer confidence, appear to beckon recovery, the longer-term strategic issues remain shrouded in the smoke and mirrors of central bank...
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