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Liberty and Power

  • Jun 23, 2006

    Book Reviews ≠ Trend Pieces

    by Liberty and Power

    Reviewing Seinfeld, Master of Its Domain, edited by David Lavery and Sara Lewis Dunne, in June 19th’s The Weekly Standard, Max Watman (this link may not work)notes the lameness of some of the pomo essays, then concludes of scholars: “They have become sadly inured to the tedium of television, and with their minds dulled by it, have taken up the only topic they grasp. But since they have onl
  • Jun 23, 2006

    The Death Tax, yet again

    by Liberty and Power

    They've been arguing in Congress again about the estate tax, aka the death tax, so I guess I might as well link to the archived column I wrote on this subject for The Freeman back in 2001. It was one of their"It Just Ain't So!" columns, which they use to reply to some popular misconception - a great feature. (NB - the contact info and ID are no longer correct, of course; use the info available on the masthead ab
  • Jun 23, 2006

    The Reformation and Islam

    by Liberty and Power

    Historical analogy is a favourite mode of argument for many politicians and commentators. Nothing wrong with that but if it is to be helpful and illuminating the analogy needs to be correct and based upon an accurate understanding of the past events that are being compared to current happenings. If so it will help us to understand what is going on and to have some idea of what may happen in the future. If not it will actually hinder real understanding. A classic example of the way that this can
  • Jun 23, 2006

    Another (qualifiedly) cool cartoon

    by Liberty and Power

    This one is fun. An excellent demonstration of some basic economics. They start to lose me when they get to the part about why we need to pay our taxes, but then they partially redeem themselves by showing why it's bad when taxes get too high. Another minus is a sort of anti-Higgsian move: they show how government increased interference during WWII, but then claim (plainly falsely) that afterwards, all freedoms were
  • Jun 23, 2006

    Is the Income Tax Unconstitutional?

    by Liberty and Power

    Wishful thinking, always a temptation, is hazardous. Example: An awful lot of people think the income tax as it applies to private-sector wage earners is illegal -- even unconstitutional -- and they assume that if they can only come up with the right legal arguments, judges will strike down the tax and make America a free society once more. Many such people are in prison today.

    It would be nice if their wish came true. But it's not going to happen, for reasons I will dis
  • Jun 23, 2006

    Beauty and the Labor Market: A Special Invitation for L and P Readers

    by Liberty and Power

    Professor Niclas Berggren poses the following invitation to our readers:
    Several studies document that beauty plays a role in the labor market: beautiful people earn more than others. Three economists are conducting a study to see whether there is a beauty premium in politics as well, such that beautiful candidates have greater electoral success. You are hereby invited to participate in the study, run by Associate Professor Niclas Berggren (The Ratio Institute), Dr. Henrik Jord
  • Jun 22, 2006

    The Profit Motive, via cartoon

    by Liberty and Power

    This 40's vintage cartoon about economics is pretty great. (My qualification is due to the part about taxation being socially beneficial rather than a drain on the productivity which the cartoon otherwise champions. All in all, though, pretty awesome.) (Hat tip: Paul Hsieh) Update: this one is also pretty great. (
  • Jun 22, 2006

    Americans Should Be "Anti-American"

    by Liberty and Power

    [W]hen [Robert] Kagan writes about anti-Americanism, he’s deliberately using an equivocal term in order to elicit unthinking, knee-jerk anti-anti-Americanism in his readers. He likes the imperial U.S. foreign policy, so when foreign people express their hated for it, Kagan and his ilk misdirect us to think the foreigners hate us as individuals. The apologists for empire count on you not to examine the matter too closely, because if you did, you might see the merit in what the foreign
  • Jun 21, 2006

    Another Victory Over Terrorists: How the US is 'Protected'

    by Liberty and Power

    During the Saddam era, four anti-Saddam Kurdish men worked with British & American welfare agencies in Kurdistan. When Saddam Hussain invaded in 1996, their lives were endangered. US govt officials airlifted them first to Turkey, then to Guam where they were thoroughly vetted. Authorities permitted them to settle in the US in 1997. They all eventually settled in Harrisonburg, Virginia with their families who also managed to escape from Saddam’s Iraq. Eventually, some 70 Kurdish families set
  • Jun 20, 2006

    Release of Open Letter on Immigration

    by Liberty and Power

    The Independent Institute has just released its Open Letter on Immigration to President Bush and Congress on the economics of immigration. The Open Letter on Immigration has been signed by 500+ American economists and other scholars, including five Nobel Laureates, plus more than 40 scholars from other countries.

    The media release for the Open Letter

  • Jun 19, 2006

    July issue of "Liberty"

    by Liberty and Power

    The July issue of “Liberty” is now on the stands. Its most prominent feature is a symposium of 25 authors, including many leading libertarian intellectuals, each of whom recommends the books that he or she believes other people ought to read.

    Among the other interesting articles are a report by Randal O’Toole on current trends in urban planning and their malign effects, a memoir by a Maine state legislator on his life as a libertarian in public office, and a review by Jo Ann Skouse
  • Jun 19, 2006

    Exploring the Ideas of Liberty

    by Liberty and Power

    I’ve just returned from an exhausting yet rewarding week of teaching at an IHS summer seminar. One question which I hear a lot is, what do you enjoy about teaching these? The first thing that comes to mind is that they’re interdisciplinary: my philosophy lectures are mixed in with lectures from two economists, a historian, and a lit professor. As far as I can tell, this gives the students a far more complete picture of how the