By Raymond C. Niles It is now estimated that half of all bars and restaurants in New York City will close forever, as a result of the loss of customers due to fears of Covid transmission, mandatory lockdowns, and the slow pace of reopening. Just a few days ago, the City finally permitted indoor dining, but in only ¼ of available restaurant space. This happens just as colder … [Read more...] about Goodbye Grounded, My Favorite Coffee Bar Destroyed by Lockdowns
Lockdown
Why Principles Still Matter in a Pandemic
By Ethan Yang Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Over the course of six months, the United States as well as the entire world has succeeded in bringing itself to its knees, economically, socially, and politically. It may seem like a lifetime ago but we entered the year 2020 not just as a country but as a global civilization: the richest, freest, and healthiest we have … [Read more...] about Why Principles Still Matter in a Pandemic
The New Fascism
By George Gilder Up here in Maskachusetts, in the Berkshire Hills, we have a new form of fascism that might well be called “phasism” as our Governor Charlie Baker phases out our freedoms and our economic life. Banning music and theater and Tanglewood concerts and tennis tournaments and baseball games and track meets and schools and colleges, he has put his knee on the … [Read more...] about The New Fascism
Broadway Closed but Porcfest Stayed Open
By Jeffrey A. Tucker It was the 17th year for the Porcupine Freedom Festival in Lancaster, New Hampshire, held at the Rogers Campground. It was an unusually spirited, emotional, and powerful gathering this time, mostly because it took place in defiance of the fear-based culture that politicians and the media have been spreading for months. Hey, if Woodstock could take place … [Read more...] about Broadway Closed but Porcfest Stayed Open
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
Entrepreneurship in the Time of COVID-19
By Per Bylund Per Bylund, author of The Seen, the Unseen, and the Unrealized: How Regulations Affect Our Everyday Lives has commented extensively here at mises.org, and in a variety of entrepreneurship-focused publications, about the economics of entrepreneurship. Editor Ryan McMaken recently asked Professor Bylund to comment on what challenges entrepreneurs face right now … [Read more...] about Entrepreneurship in the Time of COVID-19
Three Ways Lockdowns Paved the Way for These Riots
By Ryan McMaken There were many reasons to oppose the COVID-19 lockdowns. They cost human lives in terms of deferred medical treatment. They cost human lives in terms of greater suicide and drug overdoses. Domestic abuse and child abuse have increased. There is also good reason to believe that lockdowns don't actually work. The lockdown activists capitalized on … [Read more...] about Three Ways Lockdowns Paved the Way for These Riots
Sweden Sees Economic Growth in 1st Quarter Despite Global Pandemic
By Jon Miltimore CNBC reports that Sweden, which avoided a hardline lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic, saw its economy grow in the first quarter. The Swedish economy expanded at a far superior rate than many of its European counterparts over the first three months of the year, data published Friday showed, following the government’s decision not to impose a full … [Read more...] about Sweden Sees Economic Growth in 1st Quarter Despite Global Pandemic
The 2007 Origins of Forced School Closings and Mandatory Human Separation
By Jeffrey A. Tucker The idea of a full lockdown of society in the event of a pandemic first emerged as an extremist proposal in 2006, issued by a computer scientist as part of George W. Bush’s preparations for biowarfare. It provoked a fierce response by the world’s leading epidemiologist Donald Henderson and his colleagues. That proposal, issued by Robert Glass under the … [Read more...] about The 2007 Origins of Forced School Closings and Mandatory Human Separation
There Will Be No Recovery Without Production
By Richard M. Ebeling Through most of the coronavirus crisis, those who have made the case for stay-at-home, reduce or stop work, and narrow the range of retail shopping to assure “social distancing” to reduce the spread of the virus have accused their critics of being more interested in preserving livelihoods than “saving lives.” But there is no preservation of any lives if … [Read more...] about There Will Be No Recovery Without Production
How Many Lives Will Politicians Sacrifice in the Name of Fighting COVID-19?
By Bradley Thomas During the current coronavirus lockdown, I’d pay good money to see just one public official be asked: “How many lives are you willing to sacrifice to prevent one coronavirus death?” Thomas Sowell has repeatedly written that in a world of scarcity there are no solutions, only tradeoffs. The lockdown debate has thus far focused on that tradeoff as one … [Read more...] about How Many Lives Will Politicians Sacrifice in the Name of Fighting COVID-19?
The Freedom of Individuals Still Matters—Even If COVID Warriors Say It Doesn’t
By Patrick Barron From 2009 to 2012, I taught an introductory course in Austrian school economics at the University of Iowa. On the first day of class, I would tell my students that the Austrian school would change the way they looked at the world, not just from an economic perspective, but from an overall life perspective. Nothing would ever appear to be the same again. … [Read more...] about The Freedom of Individuals Still Matters—Even If COVID Warriors Say It Doesn’t