CULTURE
Why Most Civilizations Fail, Part 2: Why Geographic Determinism Fails
Ultimate causation lies in ideas: why did some societies exploit their geographic advantages and others didn’t, and why did some overcome geographic disadvantages? Geography can’t answer those questions, but knowledge creation can.
The Meaning of President’s Day
America’s Early Presidents Were Admirable Men of Principle– Let us Hope we can Find More Like Them
Left Can’t Meme
Richard Dawkins coined “meme” in 1976 to describe units of cultural transmission—ideas that replicate like genes.
This Valentine’s Day Celebrate The True Meaning of Love
Love is far too precious to be offered indiscriminately. It is above all in the area of love that egalitarianism ought to be repudiated. Love represents an exalted exchange–a spiritual exchange–between two people, for the purpose of mutual benefit.
LAW
Fairness Doctrine 2.0
Dictating content under the threat of government reprisal is censorship, and censorship always involves a violation of property rights.
January 6 Was a Protest/Riot — Not an Insurrection
Despite the media’s incessant insurrection chorus over the past three years and Congress’ Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol, there is a dearth of evidence that those who participated in the riot did so with the ultimate goal of overthrowing the government and seizing its powers.
Immigration Enforcement and the Betrayal of Due Process
Today’s victims are peaceful immigrants; tomorrow, the target could be any American who dares to challenge the state.
The Bill of Rights at 234 Years Old
Anti-Federalists, who feared a powerful central government, demanded greater assurances.
MARKETS
The Delusions and Dangers of the New Mercantilism
Trump has assumed the powers of a near absolute monarch to decide when, why, and against whom he will arbitrarily raise and lower and raise again tariffs on the importation of goods into the United States.
Understanding “Austrian” Economics, Part 2
All the rest of Austrian economics follows from these basic insights.
Understanding Austrian Economics, Part 1
what a good has cost to produce cannot directly determine its value, What it will cost to produce determines how much of it will continue to be made
Deposit Insurance Myths: The Glass-Steagall Act and The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
That deposit insurance wasn’t the only way to keep a banking system from collapsing was evident enough in 1933 from other countries’ experiences.
WORLD
War Without Killing, Killing Without War
The U.S. has ample opportunity to kill bad guys while leaving good guys—American and Iranian—unharmed.
The Hazard of Doing Business with China – and What to Do About It
Moral, profit seeking businesses must be vigilant about the China risk; it is in their self-interest to compete and trade freely and not help authoritarian countries expand their control.
Hong Kong Convicts Freedom Fighter Jimmy Lai
The sham trial and conviction confirm Hong Kong’s tragic descent into tyranny.
Madeira: Europe’s Forgotten Miracle
More than a stunning tourist destination or the birthplace of Cristiano Ronaldo, Madeira is living proof that competitive tax policy can transform a remote, peripheral, resource-poor region into an economic success story.
SCI-TECH
The National Academies’ Perversion of Science
A new “report” by the prestigious National Academies engages in heavy fossil fuel benefit denial in order to claim that climate danger is worse than ever.
The Inventive Period of Capitalism in America
The so-called “Gilded Age” of “Robber Barrons” is better named as the Inventive Period of Capitalism.
Green New Scam
The House BBB’s “termination” of solar/wind subsidies is overly generous, contrary to lobbyist lies.
The Case for EV Freedom
Government should remove all preferences for electric vehicles and allow them to compete and grow on a free market. This will enable EVs to reach their full potential to provide affordable, no-tailpipe-emissions transport without harming consumers or the grid.
POLITICS
The Worst Enemy of Black People According to Malcolm X
“The worst enemy that the Negro have is this white man that runs around here drooling at the mouth professing to love Negros and calling himself a liberal, and it is following these white liberals that has perpetuated problems that Negros have.” — Malcom X
Put More Drugs Over the Counter
If the president and Congress follow through on the promise to shift more prescription drugs to pharmacies’ over-the-counter sections, they will make medicines cheaper and more accessible—but, more importantly, they will return a measure of control over health care to patients themselves, where it belongs.
Still Broken: Why American Society Hasn’t Recovered from COVID
COVID presented real danger, especially to the elderly. But the response—particularly from progressive governors, health authorities, and allied institutions—inflicted damage far exceeding what the virus required.
The Meaning Behind Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” Speech
On Martin Luther King Day–and every day–we should focus on the antidote to racism and alternative to racial thinking: individualism.