While George Orwell wrote magnificently against totalitarianism, his attempt to defend socialism in The Road to Wigan Pier stumbled badly. Original Article: "Review: Orwell's The Road to Wigan Pier" [embedded content] Tags: Featured,newsletter
Read More »Default by Inflation Is the Real Drama in the Global Debt Market
The real drama of default in global markets has not been the federal debt ceiling negotiations in Washington but the write-off by inflation. The issue of whether it turns out that the US Treasury for a few weeks has been slow in servicing its debts—with all delays subsequently rectified—is a sideshow. We could regard this as camouflage for the ongoing real write-off operation. In this, countries led by the US, where a great inflation emerged during the pandemic and...
Read More »Myth #2: Deficits Do Not Have a Crowding-Out Effect on Private Investment
Recorded by the Mises Institute in the mid-1980s, The Mises Report provided radio commentary from leading non-interventionists, economists, and political scientists. In this program, we present another part of "Ten Great Economic Myths". This material was prepared by Murray N. Rothbard. In recent years there has been an understandable worry over the low rate of saving and investment in the United States. One worry is that the enormous federal deficits will...
Read More »Ahead of the Week’s Central Bank Meetings, Risk Appetites Stoked
Overview: Today may be the calm ahead of a tomorrow's US CPI and rate decisions by the Fed, ECB, BOJ, and PBOC over the next few days. Most large bourses in the Asia Pacific region rose and Europe's Stoxx 600 is snapping a three-day decline. US index futures are trading higher. US 10-year yield is slightly firmer as are core European benchmark yields. The dollar is under broad pressure and is weaker against the G10 currencies. Against emerging market currencies, it...
Read More »Illicit Crypto Volume Reaches All-Time High Despite Markets Slump
In spite of a market downturn and a prolonged “crypto winter”, the volume of illicit cryptocurrency transactions continued to rise in 2022, reaching an all-time high of US$20.6 billion, new data released by blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis show. Total cryptocurrency value received by illicit addresses, 2017-2022, Source: The 2023 Crypto Crime Report, Chainalysis The sum represents a 13.8% increase from the previous all-time high of US$18.1 billion recorded in...
Read More »Individualism in the US Has Helped Make It an Economic Success
Individualism, while condemned in some cultures, has helped make this country economically successful. Will the influx of immigrants from cultures that devalue individualism reverse that success? Original Article: "Individualism in the US Has Helped Make It an Economic Success" [embedded content] Tags:...
Read More »Higher Corporate Profit Margins Aren’t Causing Inflation
The usual suspects such as Robert Reich claim that corporate profits are causing inflation. Actually, increases in corporate profits are tied to increases in inflation. Original Article: "Higher Corporate Profit Margins Aren't Causing Inflation" [embedded content] Tags: Featured,newsletter
Read More »“Trans Rights” Means Trans Entitlements and the End of Civil Society
The trans rights movement has quickly moved into government coercion and outright violence. There is nothing libertarian about what is happening in this movement today. Original Article: "“Trans Rights” Means Trans Entitlements and the End of Civil Society" [embedded content] Tags: Featured,newsletter
Read More »US CPI, Fed, ECB, BOJ and the Week Ahead
Of the three G3 central banks that meet in the days ahead, the market is the most confident of a rate hike by the European Central Bank. The market sees a hawkish hold from the Federal Reserve. However, the idea of a skip, a topic which even Fed officials have broached, would seem to pre-commit to another hike, and this is not typically the central bank's modus operandi. Moreover, it may be difficult for the Fed to resume hikes in July if inflation falls as we...
Read More »David French Gets to Sit with the Cool Kids at the NYT Lunch Table
Most of us would like to forget many of the unpleasant aspects of our adolescence, and especially our days in middle and high school. No matter what the school setting, private or public, every place had its “cool kids” who ruled over the rest of us, especially in the school cafeteria. Journalism has its own version of the “cool kids,” those being reporters and writers from larger media outlets such as the New York Times (NYT) or from network news. In the past few...
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