It is often argued in “decolonization” debates that each culture must find its own path to economic progress. In this context, the idea of inclusive economics is that building a diverse society requires economics to take account of “power relations, oppression, qualitative changes in social relations and . . . most importantly, the role of...
Off and on over the last two years, we’ve heard from major media outlets about something called a “vibecession.” The idea behind a vibecession is straightforward. Many people say they “feel” like we’re in a very bad moment economically, despite the fact that inflation has begun to slow relative to its worst levels (granted, prices...
“We must not let our rulers load us with perpetual debt,” warned Thomas Jefferson in 1816. To him, burdening ourselves and future generations with debt should be rare in frequency and minor in magnitude. It may be defensible for long-term capital projects like roads, but for little else. Massive, uncontrollable debt to finance current consumption...
A book that offers up the weighty observations of leading economists, academics, and policymakers on the highly topical subject of monetary policy should rightfully be a runaway bestseller. The trick, though, is to make the discussion not only relevant for readers, but engaging and motivating. While Americans are plenty focused on the angst-inducing effects of...
In his famous essay The Law, Frédéric Bastiat explains how many who object to the free market and liberty create a false dichotomy between having the government provide some service and the service’s abolition altogether: Socialism, like the old policy from which it emanates, confounds Government and society. And so, every time we object to...
For the first time in our nation’s history, 30 year olds are doing worse than their parents. In other words, we killed the golden goose. Last week, Professor Scott Galloway went on an epic rant on MSNBC laying out for his well-heeled hosts exactly what young people are going through right now. Rattling off the...
Across the world, people are struggling under the specter of inflation. In Venezuela, the inflation rate is 360 percent. In Argentina, it’s 160 percent. In Turkey, inflation is about 50 percent, about 10 percent higher than its neighbor Iran. In Europe, inflation of the euro has finally cooled to about 3 percent, down from more...
My family got a PlayStation 5 a few years ago. It’s a decision I sometimes regret because my youngest son, who is 7, likes to play it too much. (And that’s when it gets unplugged and stashed away.) But it’s easy to forget what a modern marvel the PS5 is. When I started playing video...
The Biden administration recently rolled out new emissions regulations that the New York Times said will “transform the American automobile market.” In what the paper called “one of the most significant climate regulations in the nation’s history,” the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is mandating that a majority of new passenger vehicles sold in America be...
A few weeks ago, I wrote an article about why the Bernie Sanders plan to legislate a 4-day workweek while keeping pay the same was doomed to fail. You can read the article for more detail, but the summary is that economic fundamentals determine wages—not the government. In response to that, I received an “Ask...
HR 7521, called the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, is a recent development in American politics. TikTok has been in the news for the past few years, after the public became aware of its connections to China. The popular social media mobile app is currently owned by ByteDance Ltd, a Chinese company....
Money was the tool that built our civilization. But, in the hands of the government, it can become a weapon of mass destruction. Let’s start with a simple explanation of how money greases the wheels of the economy: Step 1: Tom has $1 in the bank. Dick knits a scarf. Harry borrows $1 to buy...
The Biden administration recently announced $8.5 billion in subsidies to build Intel’s new semiconductor plants. It sounds like a terrific deal, as subsidies often do if you only listen to what politicians say when they are writing big checks to big companies. It secures good-paying jobs for workers. It protects the future of the country....
In the aftermath of the pandemic, the United States experienced the highest rates of inflation of the last four decades. More recently, inflation rates have been trending lower. Nonetheless, a number of economists have been surprised to observe that consumers aren’t very happy despite signs that the inflation rate is on a trajectory towards the...