I realize that the framers of the Constitution required a census be taken every ten years. It was a mistake. It gave too much power to the federal government, power that was certain to be abused. And yet not even the most thorough search of the writings of the framers indicates that their objective was to help the welfare state do its thing. Its
[ This is the second of a regular column by Walter Block, senior scholar of the Mises Institute, professor of economics at the University of Central Arkansas, and author of Defending the Undefendable , a brilliant application of economic logic to everyday problems and political issues. You can read Professor Block’s vita here ] In my last column ,
[This is Part Three of a series. You can also read Part One and Part Two ] Stakeholder A new word has crept into our lexicon, courtesy of our friends on the left. It is “stakeholder” and it is the entering wedge of yet another attack on private property rights. In the good old days, a firm had contractual obligations to its suppliers, to its
In my previous columns on language, I suggested that our friends from the left have hijacked vast verbal territory, and used it against us. That is, they have taken words such as “profiteer,” “rent seeking,” etc., and used them as sticks with which to beat us and undermine our political economic perspective. I urged that we strive mightily to
One of the most dismaying aspects of the recent IMF/World Bank protest in Washington D.C. is the politically unsophisticated analysis offered by the mainstream media. Conservative analysis is even worse. The event cries out for a balanced and weighed assessment of one of the most significant political debut of the 21st century: namely, the
A pestilence stalks the land. It threatens to undo the current economic expansion. It may undo any social good that has been accomplished this past decade and may even result in blood in the streets. What is this unspeakable horror, this evil genie that, if fully unleashed, could mean the downfall of us all? What is this scourge that causes
With the anniversary of the WTO protest, the protesters once again descended on the city of Seattle. Like a troop of primates, they hooted, threw rocks and bottles of gasoline, even pelleted a police officer’s eye out. Those who weren’t dragged off, left, knuckles still trailing the pavement, and the debate not much more elevated. The WTO must, of
I. Introduction: Why Praise Unfamous Men? My title raises the question of why we take an interest in individuals of whom few have ever heard. One reason is that the victors write the history--both of domestic politics and foreign policy. Their Court historians seldom dwell on those who opposed intervention and war, if only because such
What is the Mises Institute?
The Mises Institute is a non-profit organization that exists to promote teaching and research in the Austrian School of economics, individual freedom, honest history, and international peace, in the tradition of Ludwig von Mises and Murray N. Rothbard.
Non-political, non-partisan, and non-PC, we advocate a radical shift in the intellectual climate, away from statism and toward a private property order. We believe that our foundational ideas are of permanent value, and oppose all efforts at compromise, sellout, and amalgamation of these ideas with fashionable political, cultural, and social doctrines inimical to their spirit.