By Tyler Durden Two weeks ago, somewhat out of the blue, ECB President Mario Draghi issued an odd statement confirming that the European Central Bank needs to approve any operation in the foreign reserves of euro zone countries, including gold and large foreign currency holdings. The ECB shall approve both the operations in foreign reserve assets remaining with the NCBs … [Read more...] about “It Belongs to the People, Not the Bankers”: Italy Moves to Seize Gold From Central Bank
Counter Markets – Trends & Strategies for Maximum Freedom
The Golden Rule Requires Markets
By Robert E. Wright At the third annual Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) Society conference in New Orleans last week, Nobel Prize winner Al Roth gave the final keynote speech about, what else, kidney exchanges. I had already read his book on the matter, but a reception was scheduled to follow, so I went. I am glad I did because he made a somber topic quite … [Read more...] about The Golden Rule Requires Markets
The Battle Isn’t Right vs. Left. It’s Statism vs. Individualism
By Daniel J. Mitchell I’ve written about how totalitarian ideologies such as communism and Nazism have a lot in common. Both subordinate the individual to the state and both give the state power over the economy. And both slaughter millions of people. My buddy from grad school, Matt Kibbe, has a great video on this issue. Needless to say, I agree with Matt’s … [Read more...] about The Battle Isn’t Right vs. Left. It’s Statism vs. Individualism
Alberta in Canada has Tried a Carbon Tax — It’s Been a Disaster
By Robert P. Murphy The Fraser Institute in Canada recently released my study critiquing the province of Alberta’s approach to carbon pricing. My analysis for Fraser confirms what I’ve been arguing on the pages of IER for years: in the United States, conservatives and libertarians should run from any “carbon tax deal” that promises to shrink the size of government while … [Read more...] about Alberta in Canada has Tried a Carbon Tax — It’s Been a Disaster
The Reasons Behind The Relentless Ideological Onslaught Against Free Markets
By Brandon Smith I sometimes think that the free market concept is treated like The Hunchback of Notre-Dame’s Quasimodo in the long novel of global economic history. It is considered ugly and undesirable by most people who judge it at a mere glance without bothering to understand it. It is a bogeyman; a scapegoat for numerous societal problems that it has nothing to do with. … [Read more...] about The Reasons Behind The Relentless Ideological Onslaught Against Free Markets