By Peter C. Earle A few years back I took my kids to an amusement park on Coney Island. Under the early afternoon July sun, already sticky with sweat, I turned upon hearing a shouting match near the ticket booths. After a brief but coarse exchange — I’m glad my kids were on the ride and didn’t hear some of the choicer expletives — two security guards walked over and stood … [Read more...] about Don’t Defund Police, Make them Part of the Market
Free Market
The Devastation Wrought on Small Business
By Taleed Brown The coronavirus lockdown – the costs of the virus itself are dwarfed by comparison – and its consequential damage to the world economy has been shocking. Whether you’re a blue collar worker pushed out of work by tyrannical governors and the media’s incessant provocation, or an upper class retiree whose assets rest on the Fed’s hyper aggressive influx of … [Read more...] about The Devastation Wrought on Small Business
Central Banks Are Destroying What Was Left of Free Markets
By Alasdair Macleod President Reagan memorably said that the nine words you don’t want to hear are “I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.” Governments in all the major jurisdictions are now making good on that unwanted promise and are taking responsibility for everything from our shoulders. Those receiving subsidies and loan guarantees are no doubt grateful, … [Read more...] about Central Banks Are Destroying What Was Left of Free Markets
Liberation From Lockdown Now
By David R. Henderson Most governors in the United States have shut down their economies, requiring people to shelter in place. The measures are destroying one of the world’s strongest economies before our very eyes. We’re also relying on the very same governments that spent many weeks sending contradictory messages, blocking testing, and generally being ill-prepared also to … [Read more...] about Liberation From Lockdown Now
Controls Breeding More Controls
By Raymond C. Niles We are experiencing an extraordinary example of the political-economic principle that “controls breed controls.” For example, whenever a government imposes large-scale price controls that results in widespread shortages across an economy, it faces an inevitable subsequent choice: repeal the controls, or impose comprehensive rationing across the economy. … [Read more...] about Controls Breeding More Controls
What Comes After the Coronavirus, Freedom or Despotism?
By Richard M. Ebeling The coronavirus crisis that has enveloped the world has brought about calls for society and economy-wide action on the part of governments that has been matched by the imposing of radical shutdowns and compulsory mass quarantining as tens of millions of people are told to not to go to work and to stay at home instead. Governments have also been … [Read more...] about What Comes After the Coronavirus, Freedom or Despotism?
This Is Not a Recession — This Is a Government-Imposed Shutdown of the Private Sector
By Hunter Hastings Economists and Wall Street analysts are using the word recession to describe the looming plunge in output in the US economy. We’ll just make the point early that economists, exhibiting the typical emptiness of their failed science, can’t even agree on the definition of recession. Undeterred by lacking a definition, the geniuses at Goldman Sachs and … [Read more...] about This Is Not a Recession — This Is a Government-Imposed Shutdown of the Private Sector
“Uber for Everything” Is Revolutionizing Africa’s Economy
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
Uber Linked to a Reduction in Serious Road Traffic Injuries in the UK
Since its launch in San Francisco in 2010, Uber has experienced phenomenal growth, reaching six continents, more than 70 countries, and 700 cities through 2018. Whilst it took Uber roughly six years to reach the 1 billion ride milestone (March 2016), it took just two and a half more years (September 2018) to reach 10 billion total rides. Professor David Kirk from the … [Read more...] about Uber Linked to a Reduction in Serious Road Traffic Injuries in the UK
This Entrepreneur Is Suing for the Right to Transport Hospital Patients Across State Lines
By Mollie Williams Most people would pay little attention to an ambulance with a “For Sale” sign sitting on the side of the road. But when Phillip Truesdell spotted the ambulance, he saw a business opportunity. Over the past two years and with the help of his family, Truesdell has taken that ambulance and built a business, Legacy Medical Transport. Legacy is a … [Read more...] about This Entrepreneur Is Suing for the Right to Transport Hospital Patients Across State Lines
Creativity Is the Driving Force of the Market
By Donald J. Boudreaux No story in economics is as powerful as is Leonard Read’s 1958 I, Pencil. Encountering this story can completely change your understanding of society. Just as Adam Smith did 182 years earlier when contemplating an ordinary woolen coat, Read marveled at the vast amount of human knowledge, effort, and cooperation that are daily harnessed to make … [Read more...] about Creativity Is the Driving Force of the Market
A World Without Entrepreneurs
By Raushan Gross Reading Per Bylund's interview "How Entrepreneurs Build the World" inspired a thought: what would the world be like without entrepreneurs? Given that entrepreneurs are central to the market system, a world without entrepreneurs—or with only a few of them—would be a grim situation. Without entrepreneurs, we'd see few new products, little innovation, and few … [Read more...] about A World Without Entrepreneurs