Joseph Solis-Mullen | The Libertarian Institute

We’ve Always Known Standing Armies Are a Threat to Liberty

by Joseph Solis-Mullen | May 2, 2024 | Featured Articles, Foreign Policy

Thomas Gordon's A Discourse of Standing Armies; shewing the Folly, Uselessness, and Danger of Standing Armies in Great Britain, published in 1722, is a significant piece of literature in the canon of classical liberalism, critiquing the presence and role of standing armies in the governance of states. Gordon's discourse delves into the historical context of standing armies, drawing lessons from the English Civil War and the subsequent Glorious Revolution. Here, Gordon's chief points and argument are summarized, and the significance of his discourse in the context of the British and later...

Recalling Rothbard’s Epic Destruction of Nozick

by Joseph Solis-Mullen | Apr 23, 2024 | Book Reviews, Featured Articles

In the annals of libertarian political philosophy, Murray N. Rothbard stands as a towering figure, known for his uncompromising advocacy of anarchism and his sharp critiques of statist ideologies. One of his most notable engagements was with the work of Robert Nozick, particularly his seminal book, Anarchy, State, and Utopia. While Nozick's work aimed to provide a justification for the minimal state, Rothbard dissected and ultimately dismantled Nozick's arguments with precision and rigor. At the heart of Nozick's thesis lies the concept of the minimal state, a government that exists solely...

Embracing Deflation

by Joseph Solis-Mullen | Apr 16, 2024 | Economics, Featured Articles

In recent years, the specter of inflation has loomed large over the global economy, fueled by unprecedented monetary stimulus measures and supply chain disruptions. As prices have surged, concerns about the erosion of purchasing power and the threat of runaway inflation have dominated headlines. However, amidst this backdrop, an alternative perspective emerges—one that challenges orthodox opinion and suggests that deflation may, in fact, offer a path to economic stability and prosperity. Over the past four years, the United States has witnessed a staggering 20% increase in the general price...

Embracing Hayek’s Wisdom: The Paramountcy of Choice in Currency

by Joseph Solis-Mullen | Apr 9, 2024 | Economics, Featured Articles

In an era marked by economic uncertainty and inflation, the insights of Friedrich Hayek, the renowned Austrian economist, resonate more strongly than ever. Hayek's essay, "Choice in Currency: A Way to Stop Inflation," offers a compelling argument for the denationalization of money, advocating a system that allows individuals the freedom to choose their own currencies. This concept, rooted in Hayek's broader philosophy of spontaneous order, holds significant relevance in addressing contemporary inflationary challenges. Hayek's advocacy for choice in currency stemmed from his recognition of...

The Fed and the Fight for 2%

by Joseph Solis-Mullen | Mar 26, 2024 | Economics, Featured Articles

Last week, Jerome Powell & Co. met to issue an immediate decision regarding the status of the federal funds rate for March, and to provide some insight into the trajectory of monetary policy for the rest of 2024 and into 2025. As with the past few inflation readings, with January, February, and March showing inflation ticking up and underlying inflationary pressures remaining strong, talk continues to surround the Fed’s “level of confidence” whether the time is right to start cutting rates. That the Fed will cut rates is still taken to be a given, but Powell held off again last week,...

Biden’s Myth of ‘Price Gouging’

by Joseph Solis-Mullen | Mar 12, 2024 | Economics, Featured Articles

In recent times, accusations of "price gouging" have become prevalent, often targeting producers utilizing strategies like dynamic pricing and “shrinkflation.” Such accusations, echoed by political figures including President Joe Biden, overlook the intricate dynamics of supply and demand in a market economy. Dynamic pricing, a hallmark of modern market economies, reflects the dynamic interplay of supply and demand in real-time, ensuring the most efficient allocation of resources. For, unlike static pricing, which remains fixed regardless of changing market conditions, dynamic pricing...

Best of the Best, Worst of the Worst

by Joseph Solis-Mullen | Mar 4, 2024 | Featured Articles, History

The past few weeks have seen a predictable reaction to the release of (yet another) survey of “experts” regarding the proper ranking of United States presidents. Apart from the inherent problems any such attempted ranking poses, problems my colleague Hunter DeRensis aptly outlined in a previous article, is the utter awfulness these surveys regularly churn out: FDR (#2), Truman (#6), Obama (#7) and Joe Biden (#14)… Seriously? Boasting that their respondents included “current and recent members of the Presidents & Executive Politics Section of the American Political Science Association” as...

And the Winner Is…Not You

by Joseph Solis-Mullen | Feb 22, 2024 | Economics, Featured Articles

Of all the government or quasi-government institutions, there is perhaps none as openly opaque in its operations and unaccountable for its failures as the Federal Reserve. For, unlike its top rivals for this most dubious of distinctions, like the CIA, NSA, or DOD, which do their law bending and money wasting largely of sight and out of mind, the nation’s money supply is so ubiquitous, so ever-present in the lives of the ordinary person that its activities must of necessity take place before the public eye. Hence, the gradual development of Fed Speak; that is, the art of speaking so...