Some Things Never Change

"The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt.” --John Philpot Curran, Irish statesman, 1790

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TGIF: That Was the Election that Was

TGIF: That Was the Election that Was

One can be overjoyed by the repudiation of a candidate without being pleased with the opposing candidate's victory. This election is an occasion for that reaction. An American (or anyone actually) is perfectly justified in taking pleasure in Kamala Harris's humiliating defeat while anguishing over the intemperate Donald Trump's impressive win. As I like to say, every election has good and bad news: the losers lost but the winners won. That's where I am today if anyone cares to know. I rejoice at the defeat of Harris and virtually all that she stands for, while also realizing that some of the...

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Right Diagnosis, Wrong Prescription

The populist Sanders-left (which is actually broader because it includes Tucker Carlson and others called rightists) is partly correct and partly incorrect about what happened to the Democrats last Tuesday. They say correctly that the Democrats failed because they have taken non-elites for granted, patronizing and subsidizing some (minorities, for example) and disparaging and penalizing others (regular bourgeois working Americans of both sexes and all skin tones and ethnicities). This is usually stated as "The Democrats have betrayed the working class." This is good as far as it goes, but it...

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TGIF: Election Reflections

TGIF: Election Reflections

The history of the human race is one long story of attempts by certain persons and classes to obtain control of the power of the State, so as to win earthly gratifications at the expense of others. --William Graham Sumner, 1883 For advocates of individual liberty, this has got to be the most depressing election in many years. (Well, at least since 2020, the most depressing election since 2016.) Full, true, laissez-faire liberalism is far from public discussion. Kamala Harris ("I'm smart and I care"), the mush-mouthed empty suit, and Donald Trump ("I'm Trump!"), the narcissistic, militantly...

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TGIF: Happy Halloween, Traders!

TGIF: Happy Halloween, Traders!

It's the Halloween season, the perfect occasion to introduce your young children and grandchildren to the wonders of the market economy. After all, the market is a process in which individuals strive to improve their situations through trade—that is, lucrative peaceful cooperation—with others. (Today we'll ignore all the ways politicians and bureaucrats get in the way.) As a result of their trick-or-treating, children will bring home a vast quantity and variety of candies. Of course, not all kids (or adults) like the same kind of treats. While that could bring disappointment for some...

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TGIF: Socialism Is War by Other Means

TGIF: Socialism Is War by Other Means

Readers may have wondered about a quote I used from Ludwig von Mises recently. In his book Liberalism Mises distinguished the (classical) liberal case against war from what he called the "humanitarian" case against war. To understand Mises, let's examine a "humanitarian" on the war question: philosopher, psychologist, and eugenicist William James (1842-1910). Is it relevant to the largely illiberal antiwar movement today? Let's see. Whether Mises was thinking of James when the great economist wrote the "peace" section of Liberalism (1926), I cannot say. He may well have. James had given a...

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