Carl Menger is widely recognized as one of the economists leading the so-called marginalist revolution along with William Stanley Jevons and Léon Walras. There are two other contributions by Menger that are relatively underappreciated and are vital for making sense of the socioeconomic order, including why mankind remains so lost in economic ignorance and tribalistic warmongering.They are, first, his insights into the proper method or way to study the economy or...
Read More »Is Gold Overpriced or Can Its Price Go Even Higher?
This question has been at the center of a great many conversations I’ve been recently having with clients and friends. The way I like to answer it is with another question: Expensive compared to what?Despite its recent surge to record highs, there are compelling reasons why purchasing gold right now is a prudent decision, with strong indications that its value is poised to climb even higher. Making investment decisions solely based on the current price of any asset...
Read More »Banking’s Unique Business Model, And Why Capital is not a “Rainy Day Fund”
Banks are highly regulated businesses, as expected of entities to which we entrust our money, and from which we may expect to borrow someday to buy a home or start a business. Bankers interact with regulators daily. Investors wishing to establish a bank must first obtain capital pledges from future shareowners and apply for a bank charter from either federal or state government regulators. Once in business, a bank is overseen by one or more of the following state and...
Read More »The Rise of Populism Reflects the Decline in Individual Freedom
So-called populist political parties and politicians gained considerable traction with Western voters in recent years, despite being dismissed in many cases as “a threat to democracy” and “extremists” by mainstream politicians. With the election of Donald Trump in the US and of Javier Milei in Argentina, the surge in polls and electoral wins of right and far-right parties in several European countries sent shockwaves through the political establishment.The Cambridge...
Read More »California’s Crony Capitalist Minimum Wage Law
On April 1, California raised the minimum wage for large fast food restaurant franchises to $20 an hour. This law will threaten seven hundred thousand jobs by destroying the state’s food franchising business; however, there is one notable fast food franchise exempted from this minimum wage hike: Panera.Greg Flynn is the second-largest Panera franchisee in the world, but he is also known for his close relationship with California governor Gavin Newsom. This...
Read More »The Tariff of Abominations and the Era of Good Stealings
Few Americans seem aware of the fact that it was the New England Federalists who plotted to secede from the union a half century before the 1860-61 secession of the Southern states. Their efforts culminated in the Hartford secession convention of 1814 where they decided in the end to remain in the union after all, confident that they would eventually dominate national politics to their economic advantage. The leader of the New England secessionists was Massachusetts...
Read More »Yes, We Still Need the First Amendment
Government censorship has shifted to the forefront of American conversation with the recent passing of H.R. 752, which would essentially ban TikTok; this development, which has passed the House and is on its way to the Senate, is igniting debating on how much involvement the government should have in social media.This debate is not new, considering the government has been intervening in social media for years. For example, this is not the first time the federal...
Read More »March Report: The Recession In Full-Time Jobs Is Here
According to a new report from the federal government's Bureau of Labor Statistics this week, the US economy added 303,000 jobs for the month of March while the unemployment rate fell slightly to 3.8%. In what has become a familiar pantomime, reporters from the legacy media were sure to declare this a "blowout jobs report" while Richmond Fed president Tom Barkin described the report as "quite strong." This report showed, however, that the jobs economy continues to...
Read More »More Easy Money Will Plunge Us into Stagflation
Thirty major central banks are expected to cut rates in the second half of 2024, a year when more than seventy nations will have elections, which often means massive increases in government spending. Additionally, the latest inflation figures show stubbornly persistent consumer price annualized growth.In the United States, headline PCE inflation in February will likely grow by 0.4%, compared with a 0.3% rise in January, and consensus expects a 2.5% annualized rate,...
Read More »Understanding the History of African Slavery: The Europeans Were not the Only Slave Traders
In the vast pantheon of history, black people have been both victims and oppressors. Yet history has been so politicized that we hear endlessly about the former and almost never about the latter. Rhetoric has eclipsed facts. It is a fact, for example, that Africans participated in the transatlantic slave trade. History is now frequently used as a cudgel to hammer white people into submission.Instead of recognizing nuance and complexity, many who should know better...
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