Daily Articles

The Ultimate Tragedy

by Sheldon Richman December 22, 2001

It will be the ultimate tragedy for the American people if our rational desire for justice -- even vengeance -- is transmogrified into an undated blank check to our government officials. The violence that such a thing would inflict on American society would not be of the metaphorical variety. It would be real, and the ...

The Implications of Forfeiting Our Freedoms Today

by Richard M. Ebeling December 20, 2001

We are witnessing in America today the consequences from a weakened appreciation of the purposes and importance of this constitutional order under the emotional shock of a terrible and evil act on September 11, 2001. Our fear and anger is clouding our reason, a reason that should guide us to first think whether the individual ...

The Free Market Is Indomitable

by Sheldon Richman December 15, 2001

Deep in the November 14 New York Times report on the liberation of Kabul there was this perhaps little-noticed paragraph: "Food appeared plentiful. A central market that lines the road leading into the city had large amounts of fresh meat for sale, fruit juices from Iran and even Coca-Cola, a testament to the strength of ...

A Foreign-Policy Primer for Children: The Fable of the Hornets

by Jacob G. Hornberger December 15, 2001

Once upon a time in a faraway land there was a happy and prosperous village filled with industrious and fun-loving people. To protect the villagers from occasional thieves and marauders, the village council had hired a policeman named Oscar. One day Oscar got bored and took a long walk into the woods, where he discovered some ...

The White Rose: Dissent and Justice in Wartime Germany

by Jacob G. Hornberger December 3, 2001

Justice was swift in the case of Hans and Sophie Scholl and their best friend, Christoph Probst. Only four days after they were arrested and accused of treason in the midst of World War II, they were put on trial before the special "People’s Court" that the Nazi regime had established in 1934, during the ...

Half a Win Is Better than None

by Sheldon Richman December 1, 2001

Fans of the Second Amendment are rejoicing because a federal appellate court has affirmed that the right to keep and bear arms belongs to individuals, not collectives. Anyone who can read plain English already knew that. But now we have a U.S. appellate court saying so. That can't hurt.

Let’s Join the Pope

by Jacob G. Hornberger December 1, 2001

After the 1993 terrorist bombing of the World Trade Center, one of the convicted terrorists told a New York federal judge before sentencing that one of the principal reasons he had committed the attack was because of all the Iraqi children who had died as a result of the U.S. government's ...

The State Cannot Donate

by Jacob G. Hornberger December 1, 2001

At the first post-9/11 Christmas, perhaps it is appropriate to draw the distinction between the private and governmental assistance provided to the families of the World Trade Center victims. The outpouring of support from the private sector reflected the caring and compassionate nature of the American people because it came from ...

The Free Market Is Indomitable

by Sheldon Richman December 1, 2001

Deep in the November 14 New York Times report on the liberation of Kabul there was this perhaps little-noticed paragraph: "Food appeared plentiful. A central market that lines the road leading into the city had large amounts of fresh meat for sale, fruit juices from Iran and even Coca-Cola, a ...

Half a Win Is Better than None

by Sheldon Richman December 1, 2001

Fans of the Second Amendment are rejoicing because a federal appellate court has affirmed that the right to keep and bear arms belongs to individuals, not collectives. Anyone who can read plain English already knew that. But now we have a U.S. appellate court saying so. That can't hurt. The October ruling ...

Recovering Our Bearings

by Jacob G. Hornberger December 1, 2001

CHRISTMASTIME ALWAYS PROVIDES a good time both for reflection and for looking forward. While we usually do this as individuals and families, this year is an especially good time to do so as a nation. How did America start, how has it changed over the years, and where are we heading? Our country began as the ...

If Only Freedom Had a Price

by Richard M. Ebeling December 1, 2001

IF ONLY FREEDOM HAD A PRICE, we would know what each individual thought it was worth. Each individual could express his own valuation and judgment of what he would pay to maintain or increase his freedom and what he would have to receive in exchange to give up some or all ...