Census Bureau: A Threat to Freedom by James Bovard June 1, 2000 THERE ARE three certainties in life — death, taxes and the continuation of the Census Bureau’s proud tradition of keeping information it collects about individuals strictly private.” So announces the Census Bureau’s web page, seeking to assure Americans that they have nothing to fear by opening their lives to the prying of this year’s census. Regrettably, after seven years of ...
Gun Control: Where’s the Logic? by Sheldon Richman June 1, 2000 One of the old Bolsheviks is reputed to have said that the best way to destroy a country is to debase its currency. A central bank is well-suited to that mission. But there's another effective way: degrade people's ability to construct or follow a logical argument. Government schools ...
America’s National Culture on the Border by Jacob G. Hornberger June 1, 2000 People who rail that America's "national culture" is threatened by immigrants never explain which national culture they are referring to. I recently visited my hometown of Laredo, Texas, which is located on our nation's Southern border. In grocery stores and department stores half the signs are in Spanish and store ...
Kill the Estate Tax by Sheldon Richman June 1, 2000 Alas, the bill moving through Congress that purports to repeal the estate tax is more valuable for what it reveals about its opponents than for what it would accomplish. The big-government lobby is up in arms about a Republican-sponsored bill, ...
Terrorism … or War? by Jacob G. Hornberger June 1, 2000 As U.S. government officials never tire of telling us, we live in a dangerous world. Terrorism especially is an ever-constant threat, even on American soil. But is it possible that the U.S. government itself is responsible in large part for making the world unsafe for the American people? The Washington Post recently reported that during the past three ...
Count Me Out! by Carl Watner June 1, 2000 HISTORY DETECTIVES UNITE! What is the common element in the following episodes in American history? • On his march through Georgia, near the end of the Civil War, Gen. William T. Sherman used a map annotated with county-by-county livestock and crop information “to help his troops ’live off the land.’”
It Didn’t Start with Elián by Michael A. Ledeen June 1, 2000 MOST AMERICANS probably believe that it is wrong for the U.S. to return a refugee to an evil tyranny from which he has escaped even if they question whether this principle applies to a small child like Elián Gonzalez. Most Americans probably also believe that our government has generally acted in accordance with this principle. Not so. Our history of ...
God and the Economy: Is Capitalism Moral? Part 2 by Doug Bandow June 1, 2000 Part 1 | Part 2 Economic Freedom is important because it helps disperse power, allowing the development of private institutions — for instance, associations, corporations, think tanks, labor unions, and universities — that can counterbalance state power. Moreover, private property is necessary for the exercise of many political rights. If you can’t buy a printing ...
Book Review: 15 Great Austrian Economists by Richard M. Ebeling June 1, 2000 15 Great Austrian Economists edited by Randall G. Holcombe (Auburn, Ala.: Ludwig von Mises Institute, 1999); 258 pages; $15.95. TWENTY-SIX YEARS AGO, in June 1974, I was fortunate enough to be invited by the Institute for Humane Studies to be one of 40 people who attended a week-long conference on Austrian economics in South Royalton, Vermont. After a decades long hiatus, ...
The Vietnam War Was Immoral by Sheldon Richman May 2, 2000 The 25th anniversary of the end of the war in Vietnam has evoked some curious responses. Two in particular are worth noting. Some aging baby-boomers are writhing in guilt because they managed to avoid military duty during the war. Chris Matthews, host of Hardball, is one who has emoted to that effect more than once. Why should anyone ...
The “Voluntary” Nature of the Income Tax by Jacob G. Hornberger May 1, 2000 To the Op-Ed Editor 728 words Contact: Andy Falkof Please send tear sheet. The "Voluntary" Nature of the Income Tax by Jacob G. Hornberger April, of course, is income-tax month, the month in which millions of Americans file their income tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service and pay whatever income taxes they still owe the U.S. government for last ...
CAPSULE COMMENTARY: “100 Years of Government Expansion” by Richard M. Ebeling May 1, 2000 "How different life was for the average American 100 years ago! When the 20th century began, there was no federal income tax, and all levels of government took in taxes equivalent to about 6.5 percent of GDP, with more than 60 percent of those taxes collected by state and local governments. ...