Counter Markets

Financial Newsletter for Free Marketeers and Libertarian Entrepreneurs

Trends & Strategies for Maximum Freedom

Leaving People Alone Is the Best Way to Beat the Coronavirus

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By Richard M. Ebeling The world has rapidly moved into a seemingly aggressive paternalistic planning mode in the face of the Coronavirus crisis. Many voices are heard to say that personal and economic liberties must be restricted or even temporarily banned. At the same time, many of those same voices are saying that at a moment like this government spending, for all intents … [Read more...] about Leaving People Alone Is the Best Way to Beat the Coronavirus

Homeschooling Mother and Author: 6 Ideas For Parents While Schools Are Closed

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By Kerry McDonald As schools shut down indefinitely across the country due to coronavirus concerns, many parents are wondering how to get through the coming weeks at home with their children. This is new territory for all of us, especially as “social distancing” becomes the new normal and virtual working and learning spaces replace the real thing. As a homeschooling mother … [Read more...] about Homeschooling Mother and Author: 6 Ideas For Parents While Schools Are Closed

Panic Has Led to Government “Cures” That Are Worse than the Disease, History Shows

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By Jon Miltimore Anyone who’s seen the John Hughes movie Ferris Bueller’s Day Off probably remembers the scene where Ferris’s economics teacher (Ben Stein) explains the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act to a roomful of bored, sleeping students. The scene is brilliant for many reasons, perhaps most so because it perfectly demonstrated how some of the most boring things in history are … [Read more...] about Panic Has Led to Government “Cures” That Are Worse than the Disease, History Shows

Working from Home? Here are Five Ways to Reduce Procrastination and be Productive

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By Fuschia Sirois, University of Sheffield If you have been asked to work from home during the coronavirus pandemic to help slow the spread of the virus, you might be quite happy about it at first. Think of the benefits such as saving on commuting time and expenses, and being in a comfortable environment. But the home environment has numerous distractions that can make it … [Read more...] about Working from Home? Here are Five Ways to Reduce Procrastination and be Productive

City Schoolhouse: The Innovative School That’s Helping Low-Income Families Educate Their Children

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By Kerry McDonald When her daughter began kindergarten in the public elementary school to which she had been assigned in Louisville, Kentucky, Emily Duke quickly realized it was not a good fit. The environment was very stressful for the five year old, whose parents had recently divorced. The rigidity and top-down instructional methods, combined with her emotional turmoil … [Read more...] about City Schoolhouse: The Innovative School That’s Helping Low-Income Families Educate Their Children

Coronavirus Reminds Us What Education Without Schooling Can Look Like

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By Kerry McDonald As the global coronavirus outbreak closes more schools for weeks, and sometimes months—some 300 million children are currently missing class—parents, educators, and policymakers are panicking. Mass compulsory schooling has become such a cornerstone of contemporary culture that we forget it’s a relatively recent social construct. Responding to the … [Read more...] about Coronavirus Reminds Us What Education Without Schooling Can Look Like

Low-Cost Private Schools Are Revolutionizing Education for Millions of Children in Developing Nations

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By James Tooley Twenty years ago this week—on Indian Republic Day, 26 January 2000—I wandered into the slums behind the Charminar, in the Old City of Hyderabad, and my life changed forever. Building on my PhD at what is now the UCL Institute of Education, I had become an expert on private education. Twenty years ago, everyone knew that private education was just for the … [Read more...] about Low-Cost Private Schools Are Revolutionizing Education for Millions of Children in Developing Nations

Does the Coronavirus Make the Case for World Government or Decentralization?

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By Jeff Deist Sometimes terrible things happen without any human malfeasance, and the novel Wuhan coronavirus may in fact be one of those things. It is entirely plausible the virus emerged from "wet markets" in the Hubei Province of China rather than as a fumbled (or worse, intentionally released) bioweapon cooked up by the Xi Jinping government. We may never know, of … [Read more...] about Does the Coronavirus Make the Case for World Government or Decentralization?

The Entrepreneurial Advantages of Building Human Capital While Young

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By Raushan Gross While you were young, did you gain knowledge and learn skills that gave you the human capital necessary to become an entrepreneur or a small business owner? Human capital consists of the knowledge and habits developed as a youngster that form skillsets that later in life can be used in the business world. These skills are developed either through the family … [Read more...] about The Entrepreneurial Advantages of Building Human Capital While Young

“Uber for Everything” Is Revolutionizing Africa’s Economy

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By Martha Njolomole “Since its founding in 2008, Airbnb hosts across Africa have earned more than $400 million in direct income from renting out their properties via the service.” - Reuters, 2018 When safari guide Goodwin Ndosi first heard the word “Airbnb,” he thought it was a person, not a business. “I don’t know him, who is he?” he asked. After learning more, he was … [Read more...] about “Uber for Everything” Is Revolutionizing Africa’s Economy

Coronavirus May Lead to “Mass Homeschooling”

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By Kerry McDonald As fears of coronavirus mount around the globe, cities and countries are taking action to prevent the new respiratory virus strain from spreading. While the virus has not yet hit hard in the United States, government officials and health agencies have enacted response plans, corporations are halting travel abroad, and education leaders are grappling with … [Read more...] about Coronavirus May Lead to “Mass Homeschooling”