To the Youth of Egypt: How Can We Help?

Anti-Statism, The Basics
By / / 4 minutes of reading
Share

Here in America it has been difficult to get good reports about everything that is happening in Egypt. Every reporter has some agenda; they are more interested in making you fit their story, than making the story fit you. Still, even with the limited information available, I can see that what you managed to do is impressive.

Organizing non-violent protests to stand up to a brutal dictator takes courage. Bringing down a government supported by a super-power takes dedication. That you managed to do this without waging a war makes your success all the more admirable. You have given hope to the oppressed and energized the defenders of liberty in every nation. We are all inspired by your example: in the midst of the chaos, Muslims and Christians took turns protecting one another’s religious worship; in the absence of police, private citizens organized security to protect lives and property; when confronted by armed thugs, you held your ground in defense of liberty. For all that you have done, and for all that I hope you will achieve, I salute your bravery, integrity, and honor.

…

To the Youth of Egypt: How Can We Help?Read More »

To the Youth of Egypt: How Can We Help? Read Post »

eBook: Fifty Economic Fallacies Exposed

(Austrian) Economics, Anti-Statism, Education, Non-Fiction Reviews
By / / 1 minute of reading
Share

Understanding basic economics is crucial for all libertarians.  No other field offers as clear and irrefutable a case for liberty.  Indeed, statism draws much of its support from the public’s flawed understanding of economics.  Even libertarians are occasionally led astray by flawed economic reasoning.  A friend recently brought a book designed to combat such flaws to my attention:  Geoffrey E. Wood’s Fifty Economic Fallacies Exposed.

…

eBook: Fifty Economic Fallacies ExposedRead More »

eBook: Fifty Economic Fallacies Exposed Read Post »

Statism in the UK: Paychecks to be preprocessed by the state

Anti-Statism, Finance, History, Taxation, Totalitarianism
By / / 1 minute of reading
Share

Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, stressing “the need for employers to provide real-time information to the government so that it can monitor all payments and make a better assessment of whether the correct tax is being paid”, has proposed to modernize the UK’s income tax system.  Once employers provide payroll information in real-time, “it further proposes that employers hand over employee salaries to the government first.”

I’m sure that subjects of the Crown have nothing to fear.  The state can be trusted to process their paychecks promptly, correctly, and efficiently.  Only a crank would object to this modernization plan.  After all, everyone fondly remembers the Star Chamber that evolved out of a similar medieval program for keeping tabs on the Jews.  Since it worked out so well last time, how could anyone expect things to go wrong now?

Statism in the UK: Paychecks to be preprocessed by the state Read Post »

How State Lotteries Make Markets Less Efficient

Anti-Statism, Business, Finance, Statism
By / / 1 Comment / 1 minute of reading
Share

Someone sent me a link to this paper yesterday.

Prof. Harris argues that skilled traders, who consistently profit, do so by taking money from people who trade for extrinsic reasons, to hedge risks, increase their savings, or simply to gamble for entertainment.  He then points out an interesting implication:

If gamblers do indeed contribute to market quality in the long run by subsidizing information acquisition, an intriguing argument can be made about public lotteries.  Lotteries would appear to compete with financial markets for gamblers willing to lose money. Lottery gamblers subsidize the state through their voluntary participation in a negative-sum game. Financial market gamblers subsidize productive information acquisition.  Perhaps prices, and ultimately economic production, would be more efficient if gamblers gambled exclusively in the financial markets.

So there you have it — state lotteries make us worse off by wasting gambling money that would otherwise be productively spent.

How State Lotteries Make Markets Less Efficient Read Post »

Scroll to Top