“In public administration, there is no connection between revenue and expenditure there is no market price for achievements.” – Ludwig von Mises Fifty years ago, Detroit was the fourth largest city in the United States, with a population of 1.7 million people, and at $8,500 per year, one of the richest cities in terms of per capita income. It
On February 7, 2009, and in the week that followed, bushfires ignited across Victoria, in Australia. [1] The fires raged through many towns, destroying at least 1,834 homes, [2] and killing at least 209 people, [3] more fatalities than any bushfire in Australian history. [4] Let’s compare: in the 1983 “Ash Wednesday” bushfires, seventy-five
It is well known that the libertarian political philosophy is antagonistic to coercively imposed rules that limit people’s freedom to use their private property as they see fit. Indeed, the very essence of libertarianism is the nonaggression principle that condemns the initiation of force against person or property. As a result, libertarians have
The April 20 explosion and subsequent round-the-clock oil spill from a BP-operated deepwater drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico 40 miles off the Louisiana coast has generated justifiable anger across the nation. It’s also generated calls for strict sanctions against BP, the most drastic of which is confiscation of all company assets. The front
The national furor over the TSA’s new procedures — culminating in yesterday’s “ Opt Out Day “ — has elicited the typical response from the bureaucracy and its apologists. Why, these invasive scans and “enhanced pat-downs” are only for your good, in order to ensure safe flying. You don’t want another attack, do you? This is a false tradeoff.
Over the past two weeks, National Public Radio (NPR) has carried stories on the plight of the bluefin tuna and on the conservation campaign designed to save the endangered fish. Restaurants and supermarket chains have pledged to boycott the delectable creature until governments lower fishing quotas. Some vocal fishermen naturally oppose reductions
Should “Joe the Plumber” be allowed to do plumbing work without all the requisite licenses and affiliations? What if he were calling himself an interior designer? A recent article in Regulation magazine discusses how many states are passing regulations on interior design. I recently read Francis Schaeffer’s compelling A Christian Manifesto , and
Most of us would never think of asking our neighbors to foot a personal bill. We accept responsibility for car and roof repairs as ours alone. In addition, we don’t bang on the door across the street in order to demand a contribution towards our children’s figure skating lessons, taekwondo classes, etc. That which is consumed or used by our
My family recently traveled to Texas to relax and camp. I returned with a few observations. Because They Can Camping? Alright, we pull a travel trailer, with hot water, A/C, etc. We’re not roughing it, but our SUV is relatively cramped when you consider the empty space being towed behind us. One of my daughters asked, “Why did the state make it
I had a busy weekend. I dug a hole, filled it in, and dug it out once again. I shoveled my driveway and then threw the snow back so that I could shovel it a second time. I vacuumed the carpet in our family room, shook out a bag of Cheerio dust, and vacuumed the same as before. Based on the prevailing view of political economy, I worked and
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.