Daily Articles

Conservative Support of Darth Vader and the Empire

by Jacob G. Hornberger April 23, 2004

Isnt it fascinating that so many conservatives steadfastly remain committed to the imperial role that the United States now plays in the world, even while claiming to support the limited-government republic of our forefathers? Hundreds of thousands of imperial troops are stationed on hundreds of military bases in more than 100 countries. Cities ...

9/11 Could Have Been Prevented

by Sheldon Richman April 21, 2004

From Richard Clarke to Condoleezza Rice, the security establishment agrees on one thing: there was no sure way to stop the attacks of September 11, 2001. Maybe, maybe not. But if that is correct, it doesnt get the Bush administration and its predecessors off the hook. The very inability to prevent terrorism is a powerful argument against the interventionist polices ...

Is FOX News Supporting the Troops or the President?

by Jacob G. Hornberger April 19, 2004

What fascinates me is how people at FOX News have convinced themselves that theyre supporting the troops while supporting the U.S. governments continued occupation of Iraq. After all, no one can honestly still claim that the troops are dying for freedom because Saddam Hussein is now in jail. Moreover, according to Iraqi Shi'ite Sheik Raed Saadi, it is now ...

The New Privileges of U.S. Citizenship

by William L. Anderson April 16, 2004

Last month one of us celebrated a good friends official swearing in as a U.S. citizen. After a decade-plus ordeal of wading through red tape and jumping through Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS) hoops, this woman exclaimed, Thank God, I will never have to deal with the INS again! Neither of us had the heart to break the news ...

In Defense of a Free Market in Health Care

by Robert D. Helmholdt April 16, 2004

None of the so-called health-care reforms expressed in a plethora of political speeches will work, because all government reforms in this area are simply tinkering at the edges of a terminally ill and fatally flawed program. Its just political preening in a quest for votes, popularity, and power. The last thing we need is more Washington, D.C.-style social science ...

Bush’s Imperial Echo of General Maude

by Jacob G. Hornberger April 14, 2004

In his press conference last night, President Bush said, As a proud and independent people, Iraqis do not support an indefinite occupation, and neither does America. We're not an imperial power, as nations such as Japan and Germany can attest. We're a liberating power, as nations in Europe and Asia can attest as well. Unfortunately, the president continues to maintain ...

A New Enemy!

by Jacob G. Hornberger April 12, 2004

Well, those who were anguishing that the United States was without an official enemy after the capture of Saddam Hussein (the new Adolf Hitler) can sleep well again: America has a new enemy an even newer, younger, and more dangerous Hitler! (Youll recall that this psychological phenomenon ...

Wal-Mart as a “Wedge Issue”

by George Leef April 9, 2004

The major political parties thrive on what are known as “wedge issues.” A wedge issue is one that takes advantage of the fact that many voters are motivated far more by emotion than by reason. It works at the gut level, driving people into anger first, and then into the voting booth, even though, when ...

The Keys to Economic Development:

by Jacob G. Hornberger April 9, 2004

VIDEO: The Keys to Economic Development Dear FFF Supporters, I just returned from Porto Alegre, Brazil, where I delivered a speech entitled “The Keys to Economic Development” to a conference sponsored by the Institute of Entrepreneurial Studies, one of the most prestigious free-market ...

Roads, Cars, and Responsibility

by Scott McPherson April 7, 2004

In the 1995 hit film French Kiss, actress Meg Ryan said she preferred to get around “as nature intended: in my car.” Though rarely stated so explicitly, this attitude sums up the typical American’s approach to travel. As anyone living in the Washington metropolitan area can attest, the result ...

Outsourcing Is a Natural Force in the Free Market

by Jeffrey A. Singer April 5, 2004

The other day, while performing an emergency operation on a patient with a bleeding ulcer, it occurred to me that surgeons don’t see many ulcer patients these days. Back in the 1970s and early 80s I would operate for ulcer disease every week or so. But with the advent of new ...

Ignoring the Fear-Mongering about Outsourcing

by Sheldon Richman April 5, 2004

From the way some people talk in this political season, you’d think all the good jobs are being shipped to India, leaving nothing for Americans to do but flip hamburgers and shine shoes. Don’t expect to hear sensible talk about economics in an election year. It doesn’t fit into ...