In a democracy, people automatically become liable for whatever the government inflicts upon them. Many of the most deadly errors of contemporary political thinking stem from the notion that in a democracy the government is the people and vice versa, so there is scant...
Libertarianism
TGIF: Khan Controlling Trade
by Sheldon Richman | Aug 9, 2024 | Economics, Featured Articles, Justice, Libertarianism, Politics, Sheldon Richman, TGIF
Lina Khan is a Washington, D.C., rock star. She is not only President Joe Biden's celebrated chief of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC); she's also a favorite of J. D. Vance, Donald Trump's pick for vice president. This Lina Khan must really have something going for...
Stand With Dignity: The Honor of Li Xouyin
by Kym Robinson | Aug 7, 2024 | Featured Articles, Foreign Policy, History, Libertarianism
The ancient Chinese capital of Nanjing has become synonymous with one of human history’s most horrible acts of savagery. In 1937, it was a place where the soldiers of the Japanese government committed acts of rape, murder, and torture that were not in any way...
Libertarianism and Zionism Can’t Be Squared
by Marc Joffe | Aug 4, 2024 | Featured Articles, Foreign Policy, Libertarianism
Jews are the chosen people. God promised us the land of Israel, the only place we can truly be safe. These were among the ideas drilled into me at an early age in Hebrew School, a program of afternoon and weekend education operated by many synagogues. I jettisoned...
TGIF: Democracy as Religion
by Sheldon Richman | Aug 2, 2024 | Economics, Featured Articles, History, Justice, Libertarianism, Politics, Sheldon Richman, TGIF
During a conversation with someone who loves representative democracy but hates America's current political situation, I pointed out a problem with his view. The current situation, I said, is a product of representative democracy. So you can't have the system without...
TGIF: Damn Consumers!
by Sheldon Richman | Jul 26, 2024 | Economics, Featured Articles, Foreign Policy, Justice, Libertarianism, Politics, Sheldon Richman, TGIF
Global free trade is about individual, not national, freedom—for consumers and producers who import raw materials, tools, and semi-finished products. Aside from its role as an aspect of personal liberty, free trade's efficiency benefits have been well-established...
Tariffs Violate Freedom
by Sheldon Richman | Jul 18, 2024 | Blog, Economics, Libertarianism
Debate goes on over who suffers from U.S. tariffs. Biden and Trump, for example, think U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods hurt China, not Americans. This is nonsense. Even if they hurt Chinese producers (who can sell their goods elsewhere), the tariffs still hurt...
Trump’s Attempted Assassination and the Betrayal of the Heroic Ethos
by John Weeks | Jul 15, 2024 | Featured Articles, Libertarianism, Politics
On Saturday, former president Donald Trump came within less of an inch of being assassinated by a rooftop sniper during an outdoor rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. A Secret Service counter sniper “neutralized the shooter,” but not before Trump and at least two rally...