By Ryan McMaken Perhaps never before in American history have the unelected technocrats played such an enormous role in shaping public policy in America. In recent weeks, members of Congress have been missing in action. Late last month, the House of Representatives passed the biggest spending bill in history while most members were absent. Member votes were not recorded … [Read more...] about America Is a Technocracy, Not a Democracy
Ryan McMaken
The COVID-19 “Lockdowns” Are What Twenty-First-Century Mob Rule Looks Like
By Ryan McMaken As of April 6, forty-one states have statewide "stay-at-home" decrees in place. These orders vary widely from place to place. In some states, there are long lists of exempted industries including marijuana dispensaries, liquor stores, hardware stores, and of course, grocery stores. In some states with these edicts, public lands, state parks, … [Read more...] about The COVID-19 “Lockdowns” Are What Twenty-First-Century Mob Rule Looks Like
Why Governments Hate Secession
By Ryan McMaken When the Soviet Union began its collapse in 1989, the world witnessed decentralization and secession on a scale not seen in Europe since the nineteenth century. Over the next several years, puppet regimes and states-in-name-only broke away from Soviet domination and formed sovereign states. Some states which had completely ceased to exist—such as the … [Read more...] about Why Governments Hate Secession
Three Reasons Why Decentralization and Secession Lead to More Open Economies
By Ryan McMaken When we hear of political movements in favor of decentralization and secession, the word "nationalist" is often used to describe them. We have seen the word used in both Scottish and Catalonian secession movement, and in the case of Brexit. Sometimes the term is intended to be pejorative. But not always. When used pejoratively — as was the case with … [Read more...] about Three Reasons Why Decentralization and Secession Lead to More Open Economies
How to Avoid Civil War: Decentralization, Nullification, Secession
Op-Ed by Ryan McMaken It's becoming more and more apparent that the United States will not be going back to "business as usual" after Donald Trump leaves office, and it is easy to imagine that the anti-Trump parties will use their return to power as an opportunity to settle scores against the hated rubes and "deplorables" who dared attempt to oppose their betters in … [Read more...] about How to Avoid Civil War: Decentralization, Nullification, Secession