Freedom Daily Archive

Anti-Freedom Conservatism

by Sheldon Richman December 1, 2003

“A prescription drug entitlement is not inherently unconservative, unless the welfare state itself is — and it isn’t.” — George Will Writing in the Wall Street Journal back in August, Fred Barnes, executive editor of the neoconservative magazine The Weekly Standard, asks, “Is President Bush a conservative?” Barnes replies that, although many conservatives ...

China: From Brutal Oppressor to Terrorist Victim

by James Bovard December 1, 2003

Since 9/11, President Bush has endlessly reminded the world that he is leading a “freedom-loving coalition” to vanquish terrorists anywhere and everywhere. However, the more closely one examines the details of the Bush coalition, the more difficult it becomes to detect any love of freedom. The Bush administration’s anti-terrorism partnership with China exemplifies its hypocrisy ...

Background of the Middle East Conflict, Part 3

by Wendy McElroy December 1, 2003

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 In 1936, the Arabs went on a six-month general strike, seeking both economic reforms and a moratorium on all debt. The Arabs would call off the strike if the British would end Jewish immigration. Instead, the British increased the immigration quota by 10 percent, establishing the port at Tel Aviv ...

The Revolution’s Forgotten Hero

by David A. Merrick December 1, 2003

On December 15, an anniversary will come and go with little or no fanfare. It will probably pass unnoticed, even though it is the anniversary of one of the greatest events in the history of written law. On that day, the first ten amendments to the Constitution of the United States of America, commonly known as the Bill of ...

Ireland and Big-Spending Republicans

by Benjamin Powell December 1, 2003

Despite some tax cuts, the size of the U.S. government has increased rapidly under President Bush and the Republican-controlled Congress. Washington leaders looking to improve the economy could learn a lesson or two from Ireland, which has consistently achieved high rates of growth over the last 15 years by successfully slashing government spending. Under the Republican Congress during Clintons years ...

“Bad Money Drives Out Good”

by Charles Adams December 1, 2003

This is what has been called Gresham’s Law. It was formulated by Sir Thomas Gresham to explain to Queen Elizabeth I what was happening to the English shilling. Her father, Henry VIII, had been adulterating the English shilling, the basic coin of the realm, by replacing 40 percent of the silver in the coin with base metals — a ...

Book Review: Dependent on D.C. by Charlotte A. Twight

by George Leef December 1, 2003

Dependent on D.C.: The Rise of Federal Control over the Lives of Ordinary Americans by Charlotte Twight (St. Martins Press, 2002); 422 pages; $26.95. I have often thought about how different the United States of today is from the United States my grandfather knew. A century ago, he was a young man embarking on a business career. He and all other ...

The Ten Commandments Controversy

by Jacob G. Hornberger November 1, 2003

Recently the Ten Commandments were embroiled in controversy in the state of Alabama, where the chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court defied a federal order to remove a stone monument containing the commandments from the rotunda of the state supreme court building. The controversy raised important issues relating to federalism ...

Bad Medicine

by Sheldon Richman November 1, 2003

Those who have been hungering for a real political debate in this country can’t help but be deliriously overcome with the news that CBS’s 60 Minutes will feature 10 face-offs between former Democratic President Bill Clinton and former Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole. The history of political thought will ...

Should the U.S. Military in Iraq Adopt Israeli Methods?

by James Bovard November 1, 2003

The Associated Press reported on September 18 that an Israeli military official declared that the U.S. military “is showing interest in Israeli software instructing soldiers on how to behave in the West Bank and Gaza.” The United States is looking at the Israeli policies as examples of how American soldiers can better handle a hostile population in Iraq. That may ...

Will Work for Less

by Scott McPherson November 1, 2003

“Thought I’d get a piece of meat,” . “Got all kinds,” he said. “Hamburg, like to have some hamburg? Twenty cents a pound, hamburg.” “Ain’t that awful high? Seems to me hamburg was fifteen las’ time I got some.” “Well,” he giggled softly, “yes, it’s high, an’ same time it ain’t high. Time you go on in town for a ...

Background of the Middle East Conflict, Part 2

by Wendy McElroy November 1, 2003

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 The Arabs would not have fought so bravely had they known of the Sykes-Picot Agreement, which had been signed by the Entente in May of 1916. In essence, the Agreement divided the Middle East between Britain and France. When the Arabsdid learn of the agreement, they were incensed and sent ...