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Snowden’s Flight to Freedom
Dear rest of the world: Please know that it is painful for Americans to see what is happening in the case of Edward Snowden. …
The Government Regulation That’s Been Killing for 50 Years
By the end of the week, 1,700 liberty lovers are expected to stop in at Roger’s Campground in Lancaster, N.H., to see what the …
The Republican Socialists
The collective fondness for presidents grows after they leave office for a simple reason. The next occupant of the office is always worse. For …
Inside Ben Bernanke’s Doomsday Device
Where things stood at the close of last week: Dow down 105, gold up $9 an ounce. Nothing worthy of comment, in other words. …
A Democrat, a Union, and Myriad Businesses See Chaos in Obamacare
Perhaps the question is no longer if Obamacare will wreak havoc on the American economy. Instead, the query seems to have morphed into something …
Cryptography and the Money We Use
When NSA whistle-blower Edward Snowden wanted to talk to reporter Glenn Greenwald, he insisted that they use encrypted chat. Unfortunately, Greenwald didn’t know how …
Turmoil Coming: How to Survive and Thrive
I was in Paris one time, in a park near the Louvre museum, enjoying a lazy summer day. I wasn’t the only one with …
The Woman Who Changed Millions of Lives
In this age of Obamacare, the writings of Ayn Rand are inspiring some doctors to push back. A small, but growing group of doctors …
Real Markets and Real Economics
I just spoke to a friend, Skinner Layne, who is from Arkansas, but now lives in Santiago, Chile. He emigrated there and is now …
“If They Want to Get You, They Will Get You in Time”
What a weekend it’s been, like watching a global prizefight of epic proportions, with every conceivable side throwing the hardest possible punches. It began …
Democracy Is Inherently Broken
Like the U.S., many democratic nations are suffering from permanently high unemployment, staggering public debts and budget deficits, and a deep economic recession. Although …
The Big Drag on the Rest of Us
It’s second-term scandal season in Washington, D.C. The folks at Fox are eating it up. But over at MSNBC, not so much. First it …
Don’t Be Fooled Again
“There’s an old saying in Tennessee,” the last president said in a classic George W. Bush gem. “I know it’s in Texas, probably in …
Ground Zero in Crypto-Commerce
There were no cubicles, no executive suites, and no visible hierarchies of power. It was just a large open room with computers and desks, …
The “Social Contract” With the Government Is a Fraud
There are many theories to explain government. Most are nothing but scams, justifications, and puffery. One tries to put something over on the common …
Government Creates a New Criminal Class
Woo-hoo! It is a wonderful thing when the good guys win one for a change. Well, it wasn’t a total win, but it gives …
Why Political Correctness and Economics Don’t Mix
Why learn economics? To know economics is to understand how the world works. Multitudes of people know nothing about the subject, and that is …
Is It Fixable?
In the 15th century, the highest standard of living in the world belonged to China. Places like Nanjing had reached the pinnacle of civilization …
The Not-So-Golden Years
The dream of virtually every American is to retire as early as possible. Who doesn’t want to have each and every day to do …
What Didn’t Change When Nixon Cut the Gold Link
“Let me lay to rest the bugaboo of what is called devaluation,” Richard Nixon told his fellow Americans on Aug. 15, 1971. The 37th …
Psychiatry and Its Free Market Champion
This week is a big one in the psychiatry world. The American Psychiatric Association released the fifth edition of its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual …
IRS on the Hot Seat
“I have not done anything wrong,” Lois Lerner, head of the IRS’ nonprofit division, told a congressional hearing. “I have not broken any laws.” …
Crowds, Mencken and Wisdom from Two Great Investors
The study of crowds has always fascinated people in finance. It’s not hard to understand why. Markets can go to crazy extremes, extremes no …
Don’t Believe the Gloom-and-Doom Hype
In my youth, I did several years in Hollywood. My mother, thankfully, never found out. I told her I was a contract killer for …