Daily Articles

The Spanish-American War: The Leap into Overseas Empire, Part 2

by Joseph R. Stromberg January 1, 1999

Part 1 | Part 2 In February 1899, uneasy relations between U.S. forces and the Filipino insurgents turned into actual fighting. America was now to learn the sorrows of empire along with its joys. Rallying under the slogan " No hay derecho a vender un pueblo como se vende un saco de patatas " ("There is no right to ...

A Better State of the Union Address

by Jacob G. Hornberger January 1, 1999

"My fellow Americans, I, William Jefferson Clinton, am pleased to report on the state of the union on the eve of the millennium and to propose a different direction for our country. "For most of the 20th century, the primary role of the federal government has been to take care of ...

Book Review: Problemas Economicos de Mexico

by Richard M. Ebeling January 1, 1999

Problemas Economicos de Mexico by Ludwig von Mises (Mexico City: Instituto Cultural Ludwig von Mises); 125 pages; $20. In December 1941, Austrian economist Ludwig von Mises was invited by Luis Montes de Oca, a former director of the Mexican central bank, to deliver a series of lectures in Mexico during January and February 1942. The Mexico visited by Mises was ...

Thought Crimes and Presidential Tantrums

by Sheldon Richman December 2, 1998

In an era of "hate crime" legislation, which makes it an added offense to think certain bad things when committing a real crime, we have a new forbidden thought: that President Clinton launched a savage attack on Iraq to delay, if not scuttle, the impeachment effort in the House of Representatives. As with Mr. Clinton's ...

Patriotism along the Southern Border, Part 1

by Jacob G. Hornberger December 1, 1998

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 Not long ago, the patriotism of Mexican-Americans was called into question at an international soccer match in Los Angeles. Anglo-Americans were outraged that Mexican-Americans booed during the playing of the American national anthem and then cheered for the Mexican, rather than the American, soccer team. It wasn't so much that the ...

Monetary Central Planning and the State, Part 24: Milton Friedman’s Framework for Economic Stability

by Richard M. Ebeling December 1, 1998

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 ...

The Best Peace Money Can Buy?

by Sheldon Richman December 1, 1998

The phrase "peace at any price" has a new meaning. These days it means the American taxpayer will be forced to pay any price to make the president of the United States look good at a peace conference. This is how our Middle East policy goes. A president has domestic problems. What to do? War is always ...

Financial Privacy: R.I.P.

by Sheldon Richman December 1, 1998

Okay, this is going too far. According to the Federal Register of December 7, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) wants a new way to snoop on us. It proposes a mandatory program for insured nonmember banks called "Know Your Customer." This is not some friendly way for banks to serve ...

Toying with the Free Market

by Sheldon Richman December 1, 1998

Here's a noteworthy story from the Washington Post last September: "Toys 'R' Us Inc., the world's largest toy retailer, announced a major restructuring yesterday in an effort to shore up the chain's sales and profits, which have flagged as a result of growing competition from discounters and changes in the ...

The Minimum Wage: Enemy of the Poor

by Sheldon Richman December 1, 1998

Whenever politicians wish to score political points, they recommend raising the minimum wage. Parading as champions of the poor and downtrodden, they cry out against all those selfish and greedy employers who are paying less-than-subsistence wages to their employees. The truth is that whenever public officials enact or raise a ...

Spines of Jello, Not Steel

by Sheldon Richman December 1, 1998

It's that time again when America's big tough steel companies and steel workers go whimpering to the federal government asking for protection from foreign steel bullies. "Prices are too low," they cry to the government. "Protect us!" Since World War II this has happened more times than you can count. Every ...

Gun Control Would Make Us Less Safe

by Jacob G. Hornberger December 1, 1998

Government programs are notorious for achieving results that are the exact opposite of what they intend. If advocates of gun control get their way, there will be no better example of this principle. Gun control would result in a less peaceful, more dangerous society. There are two major reasons for ...