Every Labor Day, unions repeat assertions of advancing the interests of all workers. But those claims are false. Unions harm most American workers. Project Labor Agreements Unions use government-delegated powers to restrict competition from other workers, extracting higher wages for their members. But higher wages mean fewer job openings because each worker is more expensive […]
Trump has been President for more than 200 days and those of us who want more economic liberty don’t have many reasons to be happy. Obamacare hasn’t been repealed, the tax code hasn’t been reformed, and wasteful spending hasn’t been cut. The only glimmer of hope is that Trump has eased up on the regulatory burden. More should be […]
There’s been a lot of talk recently about how Millennials – the generation born between roughly 1980 and 2000 – think about economics. Much of it was sparked by the fanatical support for self-described “Democratic Socialist” Bernie Sanders from young people in the Democratic primary for president last year. Millennials have economic attitudes that are […]
In 1938 the US government passed the Fair Labor Standards Act mandating a forty hour work week, establishing a minimum wage, and prohibiting child labor. Because of legislation like this, government is often credited for making the American work environment safer and more fair. Yet, as Antony Davies and James Harrigan demonstrate with historical data, […]
In case there was any ambiguity over the idea that mass schooling values and rewards conformity and compliance, an elementary school in Florida has made it very clear. At Deer Park Elementary School in Pasco County, signs appeared this week showing a hierarchy of behaviors from good to bad. “Democracy” was at the top, “Anarchy” was at […]
Rosario is Argentina’s second oldest city. Located by the Paraná river, it is the home of hard-working people, a busy port, the national flag memorial, and the country’s bitterest football rivalry between Rosario Central and Newell’s Old Boys. It is also the birthplace of Ernesto “Ché” Guevara. In the last fifteen years or so, coincidentally […]
I was born in 1977, the year John Holt launched the first-ever newsletter for homeschooling families, Growing Without Schooling. At that time, Holt became the unofficial leader of the nascent homeschooling movement, supporting parents in the process of removing their children from school even before the practice was fully legalized in all states by 1993. Today, his […]
Since I was a little kid, I’ve always loved politics. A few days after I first learned where my family stood on the most pressing issues of the day, I asked my mother a simple question: Lil Seamus: “Mom… are we right about everything?” Mom: “Uh….Yes.” We weren’t. I mean, MOST things! We were right […]
So the Left is finally talking about Venezuela again. That is a good thing. For about a decade, large sections of the Left were in the grip of Venezuelamania. We would not hear the end of it. Venezuela’s version of socialism was their shining example, the model which the rest of the world should emulate. When the country’s meltdown could […]
A few weeks ago, road and highways minister Nitin Gadkari said that driverless cars would be banned in India in order to “protect jobs.” This kind of fallacious argument is nothing new. For the past year or so, newspapers have frequently published articles arguing that automation is to blame for job losses. Even seemingly intelligent people like […]
Following the valuable advice of co-blogger David Henderson, I’ve gotten my hands on Milton Friedman on Freedom, a new collection edited by the Hoover Institution. The book will surprise all of us who never properly appreciated the insights and wisdom of Friedman’s political thinking. His own peculiar blend of classical liberalism comes out all the more as subtle and […]
In private schools, as in private enterprise in general, poor performance drives funding away by driving paying customers away. Yet in public schools, poor performance is used as an excuse for increased funding. With incentives like these, is it any wonder that public schools are failing our children so badly? Isn’t it time to inject […]
In 2010, the small town of Collegedale, Tennessee had the dubious distinction of having the highest prevalence of Type II Diabetes in the world. Without a single endocrinologist in the small town, those suffering from this preventable and treatable form of the disease were unable to gain access to the treatment they needed. Dealing with […]
On summer evenings when I drive home from work, I often see small children selling lemonade in my neighborhood. Most of the time I honk my horn and wave, but occasionally I’ll pull up and purchase a cup, usually for 25 cents. I happen to like lemonade, but that’s usually not my primary motivation for […]
The internal revenue code is a reprehensible mess that torments taxpayers and undermines American competitiveness. The good news is that Americans don’t like the tax system. The bad news is that they don’t dislike it nearly as much as they should. At least in my humble opinion. There are two reasons for the inadequate level of disdain. First, nearly half […]