Daily Articles

Iraqi Sanctions and American Intentions: Blameless Carnage? Part 1

by James Bovard January 1, 2004

Part 1 | Part 2 President Bush’s advisors assured Americans that U.S. troops would be greeted as liberators — with flowers and hugs — when the United States invaded Iraq. That promise turned out to be one of the biggest frauds of the Iraqi debacle. One major reason for the animosity to U.S. troops is the lingering impact and bitter ...

The Perils of Nation-Building, Part 1

by Doug Bandow January 1, 2004

Part 1 | Part 2 The United States easily conquered Iraq, but the war was only the beginning. Winning the peace is proving to be far more difficult. Destroying an unpopular, isolated dictatorship in a wreck of a country was one thing. Creating a liberal, multi-party, multi-ethnic democracy where one has never existed is quite another. Despite the positive tone ...

A Lesson from Vietnam, Part 1

by Wendy McElroy January 1, 2004

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 One lesson offered to America by the Vietnam War is the folly of forcing regime change in a nation whose religion, culture, history, and politics differ dramatically from its own. As a story, the folly may begin in September 1945, when a slender figure stood on a balcony in Hanoi to ...

The Drug War and Terrorism

by Scott McPherson January 1, 2004

On the first anniversary of the World Trade Center and Pentagon attacks, President Bush assured the public that in fighting a cause “even larger than our country” the American government would “continue to pursue the terrorists in cities, and camps, and caves across the earth” to rid the world of the threat of terror. Unfortunately, in continuing to hold ...

An Important Message to FFF Supporters

by Jacob G. Hornberger December 23, 2003

This past year has been our most productive yet in terms of spreading ideas on liberty. It has also been one of our most difficult in terms of the financial resources that are necessary to sustain our endeavors. Thus, I hope you will give this letter your very careful consideration. A few years ago, our supporters entrusted us with the ...

Subjective Value Theory in Iraq

by Jacob G. Hornberger December 22, 2003

Subjective value theory in economics holds that value is subjective — that is, that the value of any item, like beauty, lies in the eyes of the beholder. Moreover, value is comparative, rather than absolute: In response to the question, “Are diamonds valuable?” the proper answer is, “Compared with what?”For ...

Keep Politics Away from Money

by Sheldon Richman December 22, 2003

The supporters of campaign-finance regulation, and now a bare majority on the U.S. Supreme Court, are trying to square the circle. They want a vast distributive state in which politicians dispense favors at the expense of others without the appearance of corruption. An inherently corrupt system with no appearance of corruption is about as likely as, well, a square ...

Saddam’s Capture Violates U.S. Constitution

by Sheldon Richman December 19, 2003

Saddam Hussein went a great distance toward establishing the kind of totalitarianism that emerged in the early 20th century in Russia, then Italy and Germany. It was a regime based on a pervasive party and ideology, self-adulation by the dictator (with concomitant privileges), and rule by terror. The ...

Judicial Blows against Military Tyranny

by Jacob G. Hornberger December 19, 2003

Two U.S. courts of appeal have dealt severe blows to the Pentagon’s contempt for the U.S. Constitution and its assumption of dictatorial powers as part of its so-called war on terrorism. The Second Circuit Court of Appeals has ordered military officials either to release accused terrorist Jose Padilla, whom the ...

Human Smuggling Is Morally Good

by Scott McPherson December 19, 2003

A great deal of moral criticism is leveled worldwide at the often brutal and unsavory business of human smuggling. Western leaders such as President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair regularly condemn the practice, especially when the deplorable conditions suffered by illegal immigrants in transit are exposed. In ...

Democrats Play Brer Rabbit on Medicare

by Sheldon Richman December 15, 2003

Is it cynical to think that the Democrats are playing Brer Rabbit in begging not to be thrown into the briar patch called Republican reform of Medicare? Maybe. But I’m tempted to think it nonetheless. Democrats such as Sen. Edward M. Kennedy complain that the Republican approach to Medicare in general and ...

Saddam’s Capture Means Trouble for U.S. Officials

by Jacob G. Hornberger December 15, 2003

In his official statement celebrating the capture of Saddam Hussein, President Bush announced that “the former dictator of Iraq will face the justice he denied to millions.” Notably lacking from the president’s statement, however, was whether the U.S. government would agree to relinquish control over Saddam’s trial to the Iraqi government or to an ...