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It is a running gag among the pro-Taiwan camp that if you were to ask ordinary folks about Taiwan five years earlier, most could not locate Taiwan on a map. At the time, matters relating to China were mainly debates about Donald Trump’s protectionist stance, as relations between Taiwan and China didn’t receive the attention many would warrant in the face of a potential war. However, ever since the outbreak of the coronavirus—now probably having originated from the...

For all of our lives, it has been the aim of most Americans to make the federal government stronger, especially with respect to the warfare state. The principal justification for an ever more powerful government is that it keeps the American people safe from the likes of terrorists, drug dealers, communists, illegal immigrants, Russians, Chinese, Iranians, North Koreans, and Muslims. Moreover, it is argued, a powerful military-intelligence establishment enables the...

Recently, South Africa evoked opposition in some quarters by bringing a case against Israel to the International Court of Justice on the account that the latter is perpetuating genocide against Palestinians. Israel’s response to the terror of Hamas has been widely denounced by the mainstream press, but irrespective of the legitimacy of South Africa’s claims, this matter has brought South Africa to the forefront of public discourse, and as such, an examination of the...

Overview: The US dollar is enjoying a mostly firmer bias ahead of today's CPI report. Sterling is the strongest among the G10 currencies after a more resilient than expected labor market report. The dollar extended its gains against the Japanese yen to a new high since last November, but the market seems cautious as it approaches JPY150, where large options expire today. On the other hand, emerging market currencies are mostly faring better. The Mexican peso and...

According to mainstream economics textbooks, one of the primary functions of money is to measure the value of goods and services exchanged on the market. A typical statement of this view is given by Frederic Mishkin in his textbook on money and banking. “[M]oney ... is used to measure value in the economy,” he claims. “We measure the value of goods and services in terms of money, just as we measure weight in terms of pounds and distance in terms of miles.” When money...

Each week we encounter mouthwatering policies implemented by the newly elected libertarian president of Argentina Javier Milei. He has the libertarian community in awe. His arrival to politics with an openly antisystem discourse shook not only the local scene in Argentina but also the rest of the world. But how? The respective libertarian parties in each country barely get enough votes to even appear on the main grid on election night! There are numerous reasons as...

Mythen-Park Ein grüner Ring um das Seebecken – das liesst sich wie eine wunderbare Idee. Eine wunderbare, aber unpraktikable Idee. Die Initiative will zwischen dem Strandbad Mythenquai und dem General-Guisan-Quai einen zusammenhängenden Park erstellen. Dafür soll der Mythenquai zwischen der Kreuzung Alfred-Escher-Strasse und General-Guisan-Quai für den motorisierten Verkehr aufgehoben werden. Eine wichtige Einfallsachse in die Stadt und eine kantonal klassierte Hauptverkehrsstrasse...

Anforderungen an Bundesrichter? JA zu Änderung der Kantonsverfassung, Voraussetzungen für die Wahl an die obersten kantonalen Gerichte Die Richter der obersten Gerichte im Kanton Zürich werden vom Kantonsrat gewählt. Dieser hat nun seine ohnehin gängige Praxis bezüglich der Voraussetzungen für die Wahl der Richter in einem Gesetz geregelt. Daher muss auch die Verfassungsgrundlage angepasst werden. Die Vorlage sieht im Wesentlichen eine Altersbeschränkung auf 68 Jahre sowie die...

NEIN zur 13. AHV-Rente Entschiedenes Nein zu den exorbitanten 5 Milliarden Franken Mehrkosten – jedes Jahr! Nein zur 13. AHV-Rente! Diese Reform ist eine finanzielle Zumutung, die uns so viel kostet wie die gesamte Armee, ohne dabei irgendeine Form von Sicherheit oder Problemlösung zu bieten. Wir beobachten, wie die heutigen Rentnergenerationen in einem Wohlstand leben, den die jüngeren Generationen kaum noch zu Gesicht bekommen werden. Junge Familien werden bereits jetzt durch...

Silvergate Bank, Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank, and First Republic Bank fell like dominos in March–April 2023. The United States Treasury, Federal Reserve, and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) intervened in an unprecedented way to stall the domino effect. They waived the FDIC’s $250,000 cap on insured deposits at the failed banks, and the Fed instituted the Bank Term Funding Program to bail out any and all banks that run into trouble meeting...