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Noninterventionism: Cornerstone of a Free Society

by Anthony Gregory December 21, 2011

A free society is impossible under an empire. Even the most just war you can imagine is a disaster for liberty and prosperity, as Ludwig von Mises pointed out. An unjust war amounts to murder, mayhem, and mass destruction. And a perpetual state of war guarantees that liberty will never be achieved. James Madison said it very well: Of all ... [click for more]

Who Was the Real Thomas Jefferson?

by Thomas E. Woods Jr. December 20, 2011

Liberty, State, & Union: The Political Theory of Thomas Jefferson by Luigi Marco Bassani (Macon, Ga.: Mercer University Press, 2010); 277 pages. No one doubts that our understanding of historical figures may need to be revisited from time to time. But academic specialists have been known to overreach. To portray a historical figure in a light exactly opposed to the ... [click for more]

Economic Liberty and Its Abandonment, Part 1

by Jacob G. Hornberger November 30, 2011

Part 1 | Part 2 With federal spending continuing to soar out of control, the obvious question arises: How do we get our nation back on the right track — toward economic prosperity and economic liberty? To answer that question, it’s helpful to examine basic principles, including the founding principles of our nation and how our country turned away ... [click for more]

Central Planning at the Federal Reserve

by Sheldon Richman November 25, 2011

While it is understandable that inflation hawks keep a close watch on the Federal Reserve’s money-creation activities, an equally worrisome Fed activity is taking place right under their noses. Whether or not the Fed is expanding the money supply, it has undoubtedly moved into a new activity under cover of addressing the financial crisis and recession: central planner of ... [click for more]

The EEOC’s Forgotten Racial Racketeering

by James Bovard November 21, 2011

Few federal agencies have a more brazen history of trampling due process and basic fairness than the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. From the time the EEOC was created in 1965, it has continually stretched its power and sought to win by legal intimidation. Its latest shenanigans need to be judged in light of its early bureaucratic racketeering. The 1964 Civil ... [click for more]

The Road to the Permanent Warfare State, Part 7

by Gregory Bresiger November 15, 2011

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 |Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 |Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 |Part 12 |Part 13 In later years, NSC-68 would be held up by revisionist historians as the inevitable ... [click for more]

A Libertarian Who Stood on Principle When It Mattered

by Wendy McElroy November 1, 2011

A common accusation hurled at libertarians is that they do not champion or, indeed, care about the rights and status of minorities. A common misconception is that the Left has historically been the defender of the oppressed. Those who wish a more accurate view should heed the tale of the Masuda family. On May 26, 2002, the Orange County Register (California) carried ... [click for more]

The Problem with Public Education

by Laurence M. Vance November 1, 2011

In the wake of the shootings in Phoenix, Arizona, earlier this year, a bill was proposed in the Arizona legislature that would allow faculty members at universities and community colleges to carry a concealed weapon while working on campus. Naturally, this was a polarizing topic among students and faculty. Had it passed, Arizona would have been the second state ... [click for more]

Prosecutors Gone Wild

by George Leef November 1, 2011

One Nation Under Arrest: How Crazy Laws, Rogue Prosecutors, and Activist Judges Threaten Your Liberty edited by Paul Rosenzweig and Brian W. Walsh (Washington, D.C.: Heritage Foundation, 2010); 268 pages. A good case can be made that the overcriminalization of the law is among America’s most serious national problems. True, America’s economic troubles are ... [click for more]

Restoring Freedom, Peace, and Prosperity, Part 3

by Jacob G. Hornberger October 27, 2011

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 Declaring that Saddam Hussein had become a new Hitler who was bent on conquering the United States and the rest of the world, President George H.W. Bush went to war against Iraq, securing the permission of the United Nations but not securing the congressional declaration of war required by the ... [click for more]

The Debt-Limit Mess

by Sheldon Richman October 26, 2011

Last summer’s debt-limit controversy, with all its predictions of apocalypse, raises a rather important question no one but libertarians seems interested in: Why are the 535 members of Congress and the president of the United States allowed so much power that their mere failure to permit the themselves to borrow more money had the potential to severely disrupt the ... [click for more]

Obamas Dictatorial Assassination Program

by James Bovard October 23, 2011

The Obama administration now claims the authority to kill American citizens without a trial, without notice, and without any chance for targets to legally object. The “targeted killing” program of George W. Bush’s administration has been radically expanded to include Americans far from any war zone. Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair testified last year that the targeting-to-kill decision ... [click for more]