Now that Bush has been reelected, and has comfortable majorities in both the House and Senate, we will have at least a two-year unambiguous test of Republican fiscal policies. My prediction? Massive spending and massive deficits. After all, that’s what Republican presidents do, if history is any guide. Of course, the immediate retort is that at
In a recent New York Times op-ed piece, “ Second Thoughts on Free Trade ,” Senator Charles Schumer and economist Paul Craig Roberts argue that the typical arguments for free trade, while perhaps valid in the days of Ricardo, are no longer relevant in today’s economy of multinational corporations and high-speed telecommunications. According to our
The Internet has been abuzz lately with arguments over free trade. This most recent outburst of scholarship was sparked by Sen. Charles Schumer and economist Paul Craig Roberts’ joint article in the New York Times, “Second Thoughts on Free Trade” . In this article, Roberts reiterated his position that “the case for free trade” rests on the
Did you ever notice that Louisiana is the only state of the Union where you can get a decent floral arrangement? No? Then it may surprise you to learn that Louisiana is the only state to license would-be florists. That’s right: If you want to (legally) arrange and sell flowers in Louisiana, you must first pass a two-part exam. The first part is a
Thomas Sowell’s latest book is a well-written application of economic thinking to several popular topics in contemporary political discourse. Although the book is best suited for the newcomer to free market ideas, even mature Austrian economists would benefit from its insights and excellent anecdotes. Sowell’s overall message is that “thinking
If you read up on the history of economic thought in the twentieth century, you are likely to encounter the work of Piero Sraffa, in particular his curious volume, Production of Commodities by Means of Commodities: Prelude to a Critique of Economic Theory (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1960). Although this book was instrumental in the
An article in the April 5 issue of Time reminds us how deeply ingrained collectivist habits of thought are in this country. The piece deals with the Chicago school board’s decision to stop holding back (or “flunking” as it used to be called) so many students. The article begins like this: Eight years ago, Chicago moved to end social promotion of
When it comes to “armchair economics,” a popular and effective technique is the reductio ad absurdum . Rather than attacking a view head-on, it is often simpler to take the argument to its logical conclusion, at which point its inherent fallacy is obvious (or at least, should be obvious). For example, in order to refute the doctrine that saving
With the recent rate hike, the mainstream press obediently parrots the macroeconomic analysis offered by our friendly central planners at the Federal Reserve. The average citizen knows that he or she is not nearly smart enough to understand the complex interrelationships of various price indices, yield curves, consumer confidence, and so
On October 4, the privately funded SpaceShipOne climbed to an altitude of over 70 miles, clinching the $10 million “X Prize.” Many analysts were excited by the prospects for commercial space travel, and the day when orbital or even interplanetary flights would be affordable for the average person. As if to rebut the naysayers who dismissed
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.