When Philip A. Fisher died last month at the age of 96, it suddenly struck me that being a wise and patient stock market guru may be the best route to a long life. “His career spanned 74 years,” wrote his son, Kenneth Fisher, in a column in Forbes....
POLITICS
The Economics of the Military Draft
Last year, Sen. Fritz Hollings (D-S.C.) and Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) introduced bills calling for reinstatement of the military draft. A far more descriptive term for the military draft is government confiscation of labor services, but keeping with the spirit of...
What’s Left to Go Up? No Doubts About the Dow
After a year in which every stock market in the world has risen handsomely, real estate has gone through the roof, and bonds and commodities have soared as well, the witty and bearish Jim Grant, editor of Grant’s Interest Rate Observer, has titled his spring...
The “Cost” of Medical Care
If you ask most people about the cost of medical care, they may tell you how much they have to pay per visit to their doctor’s office or the monthly bill for their prescription drugs. But these are not the costs of medical care. These are the prices paid. The...
“Repositioning” Reality: The World of Non-A in Fallujah
The press has done its usual fine job of reporting on the siege of Fallujah–which is to say that it is impossible for the public to figure out what is going on there. The difficulty isn’t all a matter of bad reporting, though. The important thing to...
“Progressive” Education and Taping Kids to Dumpsters
In an op-ed back in March, syndicated columnist Walter Williams slammed public schools for their absurd policies. One of the examples he cited was of Metro Nashville Public School administrators’ decision to stop posting honor rolls or displaying academic...
Faith-Based “Freedom”
Q: Why do you think President Bush is making Constitutional opposition to gay marriage such a priority? I’m much more concerned about lowering taxes further and cutting the role of government in our lives. What gives? A: I blame it all on religion and...
Frequently Asked Questions about Education in America
1. How many students are enrolled in public and private schools in the United States? According to U.S. Department of Education estimates, there are 47.6 million students in public schools and 5.9 million in private schools.[1] As many as 2 million children are...
Rich Liberals
John Kerry and his wife, Teresa, are worth an estimated $500 million. Along with a $35 million private Gulfstream V jet and an $800,000 boat, they own five homes in the U.S. (Source: MSNBC.com) Just what we need: more guilty liberals. Much is made about...
Random Thoughts for April 2004
Random thoughts on the passing scene: A reader has suggested that elections be held on April 16th — the day after we pay our income taxes. That is one of the few things that might discourage politicians from being big spenders. Just before France surrendered to...
Buddha Bad for Business
Recently 115 corporate executives paid $100 each for advice from that repository of business acumen, the Dalai Lama. The Nobel Peace Prize winning Buddhist spiritual leader addressed the execs in Irvine, CA. Granted, attendees were probably attracted more by his...
Failure Looms at Fallujah
A turning point in what President Bush has called the War on Terrorism is at hand. How and whether the American military handles enemy confrontations in Iraq during the coming weeks will tell Islamic terrorists and their state sponsors everything they need to know...
J.F.K.: Jiggy Fly Kerry
Gotta give it to Democratic presidential contender John Kerry. He knows how to keep it real. In an MTV interview, the host asked, “Well, are there any trends out there in music, or even in popular culture in general that have piqued your interest?” Kerry...
Bait-and-Switch Media
Readers sometimes ask why I am seldom seen or heard on television or radio. Mainly it is because I turn down 90 percent of the invitations I get. A recent radio interview shows why. I was invited on as a guest to talk about my new book, “Affirmative Action...
Poor Education Prognosis
Drs. Abigail and Stephan Thernstrom’s new book “No Excuses: Closing the Racial Gap in Learning” shows that the government education whites receive is nothing to write home about, but for blacks, it’s no less than a disgraceful disaster....
Anti-Israel Terror Backfires
A day after Israeli troops killed its second leader within a single month, the Islamist terrorist organization Hamas put on a brave face. The Israelis “are dreaming” if they think this would weaken Hamas, announced Ismail Haniyeh to a crowd of over 70,000...
Dealing with Investing Panic-mongers
“I am in a PANIC over this article, telling people to get out of stocks,” said an impassioned e-mail I received last week from a nice, intelligent professional woman who is a friend of a friend. “Is he right???? I am 52 years old, and I really hope...
Watchout for Hillary “Health” Care
A huge headline on the front of a recent issue of the New York Times Magazine said more than they intended: “Now Are We Ready to Talk About Health Care?” Inside was an article with the same title by Hillary Clinton. The casual arrogance of that question is...
Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs)
The mutual fund is the most successful investment vehicle the world has ever seen. But it has its drawbacks. Mutual funds are not sold on an open market like individual shares of stock, but by fund companies themselves — either directly to shareholders or...
The U.N. Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime: Disaster for America
The United Nations threatens to chip yet again from America’s Constitution and its system of individual rights, as a 2000 treaty aimed at combating crime on the global level has reared its menacing head in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The U.N....
Conservation or Confiscation?
In April, the New Jersey Builders Association finally managed to muster an attack on legislation whose purpose it is said is to “conserve” a wide swath of northern New Jersey called the Highlands. In Congress, there’s also a Highlands Conservation...
“Giving Back”: Involuntary Servitude for the Young
John Kerry keeps talking about young people “giving something back.” Exactly what did young people take away and from whom did they take it? What is the factual basis for such an accusation? And why is it so general, applied to the whole population of...
Big Times, Small Men
Q: I agree with you that President Bush is a conservative who embodies yesterday’s liberals, as exemplified by his massive domestic spending, expansion of Medicare, campaign finance reform, etc. But don’t you think this is just his political opportunism at...
Bush’s Religiosity Wounds the War Effort
The religious foundations of the new governments in Afghanistan and Iraq threaten to undercut the Bush administration’s war on terrorism. Being a champion of religion, however, Bush sanctions these developments that aid and abet America’s would-be...
America’s Compassion in Iraq Is Self-Destructive
The bloody siege in Fallujah and the standoff against a religious warlord, Moktadr al-Sadr, and his militia indicate that the war in Iraq is worsening. Things are going badly not because–as some, like Sen. John Kerry, claim–the United States is arrogant...
Gay Marriage
Is gay marriage a Constitutional, individual right?
Criminalizing Business, Part 2
Can you imagine being charged with murder for the death of someone you didn’t even know was dead, when you were not even around when it happened? Only in California — and only if you are in business. In a state where hardened criminals are coddled, and...
Fixing a Broken Tax System with a Flat Tax
America’s complicated tax system needs a complete overhaul, not minor fixes. The large role that system plays in many of the political dramas dominating the daily headlines shows why. Republicans and Democrats, for instance, are fighting over the...
The Roots of Iraq’s Recent Wave of Violence
I therefore counsel the occupying forces quickly to leave Iraqi cities and then, when feasible, to leave Iraq as a whole
Has the Bush Administration Trashed the Environment?
On the eve of “Earth Day,” the Bush administration stands accused of trashing the nation’s environment. The New York Times similarly indicted the administration in its recent Sunday magazine cover story: “Changing the Rules — How the Bush...
Criminalizing Business
The recent conviction of Martha Stewart for lying to federal investigators looking into “insider trading” is one of the sad signs of our times. If you create enough laws, everyone will be a criminal. Perjury should of course be a crime, even when it is...
The People Who Brought You the Weekend
Another bumpersticker for you: “The Labor Movement–The People Who Brought You the Weekend.” Not quite. Improved working conditions don’t happen because a compassionate President signs them into law. If any given law would harm significant...
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