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“No point in the field of political economy merits more thought and analysis than where to draw the line distinguishing the functions proper to government from the role assumed by all-out government—socialism. A good society is but a dream unless this issue be reasonably resolved.” This is how Leonard Read opened chapter 9, “To Avarice No Sanction,” in his 1972 book, To Free or Freeze: That Is the Question. While he addressed that question from multiple angles in his...

Overview: The back-to-back surprise rate hikes by the Australia and Canada spurred speculation that the Fed could hike next week, and this lifted US rates and helped the dollar recover. The odds of a hike increased, according to the indicative pricing in the Fed funds futures market from about a 20% chance to a little above 35%. now. At yesterday's high, the two-year yield was up a little more than 25 bp since the low before the US employment data last Friday. It is...

The drug war of the last half century has incarcerated millions and created havoc. What it hasn't done is eliminate people using drugs without government permission. Original Article: "The Drug War: An Irrational Crusade" [embedded content] Tags: Featured,newsletter

Technocrats frequently pressure the US government to increase R and D as a strategy to upstage China. The assumption is that public R and D will lead to innovation and economic growth because research generates the science that spurs innovation. Yet the formula is mistaken, for history has shown that science often lags technology. Innovations prior to the advent of modern science in Europe occurred without crucial advancements in scientific knowledge. But this does...

Domestic violence is a stain on society, but it is worse if we only care about violence committed against people of one sex. Original Article: "Committing Domestic Violence against Men . . . Just for a Giggle" [embedded content] Tags: Featured,newsletter

Ryan and Zack look at how China, Iran, and Saudi Arabia are reshaping the Middle East into a region where the United States no longer dominates. This is a good thing for ordinary Americans. Additional Resources "Thanks to Sanctions, the US Is Losing Its Grip on the Middle East" by Ryan McMaken: Mises.org/WES_11_A "The Petrodollar-Saudi Axis Is Why Washington Hates Iran" by Gary Richied: Mises.org/WES_11_B "Peace is Breaking Out in the Middle East… and...

Many economists believe that economics must emulate the physical sciences with controlled experiments to be credible. Econometric models, they claim, can fulfill the role of laboratory experiments. Through mathematical and statistical methods, an economist supposedly establishes relationships between various economic variables. For example, personal consumer outlays are related to personal disposable income and the interest rates, while capital expenditure is...

After a buoyant year 2022, sponsorship deals with blockchain and cryptocurrency companies for the Formula One (F1) race are shrinking this year on the back of high-profile collapses and turbulent markets. A Bloomberg analysis found that while all teams had at least one crypto-native sponsors in 2022, that proportion declined to 70% this year, as of June. The trend suggests that F1 may be re-evaluating its ties with the crypto industry amid the FTX scandal and a...

One of the main fronts in the current culture war in the United States is the debate over "masculinity." Certain corners of the Left tell us that "toxic masculinity" is a terrible thing. Yet, it's often unclear whether masculinity is itself necessarily toxic, or if toxic masculinity is just one type of masculinity. How masculinity is defined is essential to the debate, and every pundit wants to define it his or her own way. Thus, David French, in his May 28...

While the US ratchets up efforts to isolate its many enemies, the Chinese, the Saudis, the Arab League, and OPEC all shrug and look to increasing international communication and trade. Original Article: "Thanks to Sanctions, the US Is Losing Its Grip on the Middle East" [embedded content] Tags: Featured,newsletter