Ideas Matter

The Tale of the Slave

As a fan of Robert Nozick's Anarchy, State and Utopia (1974), I was delighted to come across this "Tale of the Slave" video presentation. Here's the original text, so you can follow along. It's a terrific thought experiment.

Thomas Sowell on The Anointed and Respectable Conservatism

You'll forgive the rather harsh assessment of both left-liberalism and conservatism. But in this video, Thomas Sowell really captures a) what's wrong with the liberal left and b) the only respectable form of conservatism. 

Recycling and Other Absurdities

This funny video from the folks at Portlandia is a spoof, but it's not so far from the reality in some cities. For a nice friday read, let me recommend a now-classic debunking of municipal recycling programs from Daniel K. Benjamin: Eight Great Myths of Recycling. It'll make you wonder if what's going on in this Portlandia bit is closer to sad reality than comedy fun.

Fraser Founder on the Ongoing Impact of Milton Friedman

Michael Walker is founder of the Fraser Institute. No doubt, Walker and the Fraser Institute will be celebrating Milton Friedman's Century -- will you? 

Regulation Nation - #46281

Regulation costs Americans more than a trillion and a half dollars. "But, but --" say the advocates of regulation, "without them we'd all get sick or injured or die!"

Well, some regulations are about protecting health and safety, but many are just rackets concocted by special interests groups to make money -- as we see in the video above. In fact, I'd argue that most regulations are special interest schemes (even the ones designed to ensure health and safety).

Killing John Dewey

John Dewey is famous for devising -- more or less -- the Soviet factory model of public education we have in the U.S. today. This system has essentially stagnated (and in the inner cities, it's gotten worse). Student performance on the systems' own testing remains flat despite a doubling of taxpayer resources per student going to education since 1970. It's become a fairly well known fact that the system has failed and is failing multiple generations. That's sad. Hence my deliberately provocative title. But really: what do we do about it? How do we kill John Dewey?

Politics and the "Paradox of Choice"

The Parasite Generation

Normally I resist putting up clips from news programs. But occassionally, even in the news, ideas matter. One professor in Florida -- which I realize is a small sample -- has discovered that most of his students have a sense of entitlement that extends far beyond what they expect from their parents.

Bob Chitester on Free Markets and Interventionism

The following is a series of thoughts about free markets and interventionism from Free To Choose Network President, Bob Chitester.

When we talk about capitalism, what do we mean? Free markets? Or crony capitalism?

Free market capitalism, under the rule of law, has proven to be the most efficient and self-correcting forms of organization. Crony capitalism is what we increasingly have in the U.S. and, with rare exceptions, throughout the world.

Rule of law is the key -- and that means constitutional law; codified fundamental principles that all economic players, producers, consumers, investors, financiers can rely on over long periods of time. The ever changing legislation pouring out of governments large and small is what prevents you and I from being reasonably certain that a financial decision made today, based on today's laws, can be counted on tomorrow, next month, next year, etc. In that environment of uncertainty, the inherent stabilizing effect of markets is stifled.

Annie Leonard: "The Story of Stuff" Queen at it Again

Remember "The Story of Stuff?" It's Annie Leonard's Malthusian ode to backwards economics. Perhaps you shook your head at how something so dumb could get so much traction. I know I did. But green religion runs deep. Well, she's back with another: "The Story of Broke."