Daily Articles

The Jacob Hornberger Show: December 30, 2012 (video)

by Jacob G. Hornberger January 1, 2013

Authentic Liberalism Vindicated, Part 2: The Economics of Liberty

by Anthony Gregory January 1, 2013

Part 1 | Part 2 Classical Liberalism and the Austrian School by Ralph Raico, (Auburn, Ala.: Ludwig von Mises Institute, 2012); 347 pages. The passionate interest in economics among libertarians is not immediately understood by all students of liberty. Even those generally in favor of economic freedom for ethical reasons may wonder why so many libertarians adhere ...

Support FFF for 2013: Video 3

by Jacob G. Hornberger December 31, 2012

The situation certainly doesn’t look good. The U.S. welfare-warfare state is more entrenched than ever. Federal spending continues to soar. The national debt continues to mount. The Federal Reserve is cranking up the inflationary printing presses. Taxes continue to rise. The drug war keeps ruining lives. The regulated economy keeps suppressing economic vitality. We ...

Charity, Not Welfare

by Scott McPherson December 31, 2012

As long as human beings have gathered together in society, provisions have been made for the aid of the poor. In Europe, it was the church that came to shoulder most of this burden, granting a percentage of its income to those in need. In their excellent work, Life in a Medieval Castle, Joseph and Frances Gies ...

TGIF: The Year That Was

by Sheldon Richman December 28, 2012

The year coming to an end has hardly been a banner one in the cause of liberty. Once again, high points are tough to find, but low points abound. In mainstream public discussion, freedom counted for nothing, if it wasn’t ridiculed outright. The presidential election saw the marginalizing (again) of the only figure in the race — Ron Paul — ...

Holding “Public Servants” Accountable

by Tim Kelly December 28, 2012

Most would agree that if we must suffer the impositions of government, it would be wise to subordinate it to the rule of law. As Thomas Jefferson said, “In questions of power then, let no more be heard of confidence in man but bind him down from mischief by the chains of the Constitution.” This is what the Founding ...

Gun-Control, Mental-Health Laws Won’t Make Us Safer

by Sheldon Richman December 27, 2012

We would do the young victims of the Newtown shootings no honor by frantically enacting futile restrictions on freedom. It may be satisfying to “do something.” But two things ought to be kept in mind. First, liberty is never more in peril than when politicians sense that the people want them to do something — anything. Second, a false sense ...

Who Should Support the Disabled?

by Laurence M. Vance December 26, 2012

Some of the most terrifying words the parents of a newborn will ever hear are “there is a problem with the baby.” Sometimes the dreadful news comes later after a tragic childhood accident or disease. When such children grow to adulthood they are joined by an even larger number of those who lived perfectly healthy lives as children only ...

Repudiate the National Debt

by Wendy McElroy December 24, 2012

As of December 19 at 11:50:59 a.m. GMT, the national debt of the federal government was $16,357,278,240,896.86, or $52,080.07 for every individual in the United States. The only sane and moral stance is to repudiate it entirely. “Repudiation” is not a word used by the political mainstream. Part of the reason is who holds the debt. China is ...

Private Murders versus Government Murders

by Michael Tennant December 24, 2012

The December 14 murder of 20 children and 6 women at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, has garnered vast media attention and caused countless people with no connection to the victims to grieve for them. This is not a new phenomenon: nearly all mass murders carried out by civilians generate the same type of coverage and response. But ...

TGIF: Intervention Begets Intervention

by Sheldon Richman December 21, 2012

Among the many valuable doctrines associated with the great Austrian economist Ludwig von Mises is his “critique of interventionism.” Originally published in German in 1929, then published in English in 1977, Mises’s book A Critique of Interventionism summed up his position this way: In a private property order isolated intervention fails to achieve what its sponsors ...

Is a Balanced Budget the Answer?

by Laurence M. Vance December 21, 2012

According to the Treasury Department’s “Monthly Treasury Statement of Receipts and Outlays of the United States Government,” the U.S. government took in $2.449 trillion in revenue during fiscal year 2012 — but spent $3.538 trillion. That means the government spent $1.089 trillion more than it took in. Although it was under George W. Bush that the United States ...