Daily Articles

Trade Deficits Don’t Matter – Unless Caused by Government

by Richard M. Ebeling May 15, 2017

In 2016, the United States exported goods and services equal to $2.209 trillion, and imported goods and services with a market value of $2.712 trillion. The balance of trade deficit for 2016, therefore, came to $502.3 billion. The trade deficit represented a little over 10 percent of the over $4.92 trillion of total trade in goods and services between ...

You Are the True Guardians of the Galaxy

by John W. Whitehead May 10, 2017

“When the rivers and air are polluted, when families and nations are at war, when homeless wanderers fill the highways, these are the traditional signs of a dark age.”— Pema Chodron, When Things Fall Apart Those coming of age today will face some of the greatest obstacles ever encountered by young people. They will find themselves overtaxed, burdened with excessive college ...

The Libertarian Angle: How We Became Libertarians

by Future of Freedom Foundation May 9, 2017

FFF president Jacob Hornberger and Richard Ebeling discuss how they came to libertarianism. Go to the podcast.

Political Planning versus Personal Planning by Everyone

by Richard M. Ebeling May 8, 2017

In politics everyone has a plan. A plan to "fix" the health care problem. A plan to "protect" the environment. A plan to "guarantee" everyone a "living wage." A plan to "control" immigration. A plan to have "sustainable" economic growth. A plan to . . . The list goes on almost endlessly. What's wrong with having a plan? We all ...

Big Brother Is Still Watching You

by John W. Whitehead May 5, 2017

“You had to live—did live, from habit that became instinct—in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and, except in darkness, every movement scrutinized.”—George Orwell, 1984 Supposedly the National Security Administration is going to stop collecting certain internet communications that merely mention a foreign intelligence target. Privacy advocates are hailing it as a major victory for Americans whose ...

Conservatives and Foreign Aid

by Laurence M. Vance May 4, 2017

Conservatives maintain that they believe in the Constitution, limited government, private property, individual liberty, and the free market. Their actions when it comes to foreign aid show that they believe in none of those things. According to ForeignAssistance.gov (a new government website dedicated to foreign aid), The U.S. Government provides assistance to over 100 countries around the world. There are ...

The Libertarian Angle: Freedom and the Income Tax

by Future of Freedom Foundation May 3, 2017

FFF president Jacob Hornberger and Richard Ebeling discuss the morality of taxation. Go to the podcast.

What Is a Government Worker Worth Without a Free Market?

by Richard M. Ebeling May 1, 2017

Where are you more likely to earn a better salaried income, in the private sector or working for the government? Well, it turns out that those employed by the federal government and having only high school diplomas or college bachelors’ degrees, are likely to be financially far better off. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released in April 2017 a new ...

Separating Charity and Health Care from the State

by Jacob G. Hornberger May 1, 2017

One of the most remarkable achievements of our American ancestors was enshrined in the First Amendment — the separation of church and state. Reflecting the notion that religious liberty was one of the natural, God-given rights to which Thomas Jefferson had referred in the Declaration of Independence, the First Amendment expressly prohibited Congress (and implicitly the entire federal government) ...

Anti-War Awakening on a Bus Trip from Baltimore

by James Bovard May 1, 2017

In the summer of 1975, I took off hitchhiking from the mountains of southwest Virginia to visit a college girlfriend in New England. Less than 300 miles into the trip, my thumb lost whatever magic it once possessed. After striking out for six hours on an Interstate ramp in Hagerstown, Maryland, I hoofed to the nearest Trailways bus station ...

The Irrelevancy of Trump’s Cabinet Picks

by Laurence M. Vance May 1, 2017

President Trump has nominated the members of his cabinet and they have gone through the Senate confirmation process. Democrats, predictably, have been critical of many of his appointments. Conservatives, and some libertarians, have praised some of Trump’s appointments for things that they have done and statements they have made that seem to be at odds with the mission of ...

The Legal Origin of the State Secrets Doctrine

by David S. D'Amato May 1, 2017

In the United States, a citizen may sue the government. It is fortunate that it should be so, because, as libertarians like to point out, government is society’s single worst offender. The ability to hold it to account in the courts helps safeguard the rights of the individual, the consistent protection of which is the meaning of a free ...