Sheldon Richman: The Myth Of The Greater Good

Politicians must stop acting like the ends justify the means. I—and most other people, I assume—grew up being taught that the end doesn’t justify the means. Basically, this is an injunction not to rationalize one’s behavior while using other people as mere means to one’s ends. Most people apply that principle day to day. If you want at an item on a       ... MORE

Julia Angwin: FBI Turns Off Thousands Of GPS Devices

Probable cause makes a comeback. The Supreme Court’s recent ruling overturning the warrantless use of GPS tracking devices has caused a “sea change” inside the U.S. Justice Department, according to FBI General Counsel Andrew Weissmann. Mr. Weissmann, speaking at a University of San Francisco conference called “Big Brother in the 21st Century” on Friday, said ... MORE

VIDEO: Why You Should Consider Chevy Volt

Scott Mayer: The Audacity Of Ambition

Downsizing the American Dream. President Obama seems to be downsizing the American Dream. In an insufficiently noticed January 25th speech in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, he said: "Folks don't have unrealistic ambitions. They do believe that if they work hard they should be able to achieve that small measure of an American Dream." "Unrealistic ambitions" -- is he ... MORE

Andres Oppenheimer: Legalization Forces Gaining Ground

Could the end of the drug war be in sight?     For the first time since the United States launched its "war on drugs" four decades ago, there are signs that the forces supporting legalization or de-criminalization of illegal drugs are gaining momentum across the hemisphere. Granted, this is a debate that is just starting at government levels, and that will   ... MORE

Steve Chapman: Pandering At The Pump

Avoid D.C. if  gas market wisdom is what you want.   In the field of petroleum, location is everything. If you want to find oil, you don't drill in Rhode Island. And if you want to find wisdom about gasoline markets, you avoid Washington, D.C. In good times, the confusion and folly of our elected leaders have only limited impact. But when pump prices rise to ... MORE

Barry Farber: Obama's Political Hypnotism

Illusions eventually collide with reality.   Did they teach you about “psychic income” in school? Great stuff. If you like your work, for example, you’re getting more income, “psychic income,” than your paycheck indicates. If you love your work, you’re getting even more. If you love your work and meet people who become lifetime keeper-treasures, you’re a   ... MORE

VIDEO: Walter E Williams - It's The Elderly, Stupid!


A major reason why America's economic outlook is bleak.

Linda Chavez: Lighten Up On Political Correctness

Tyranny with manners.    Have we become so hypersensitive that a phrase in use for half a millennia must now be banished from the English lexicon? I'm speaking, of course, of the furor created last week when ESPN's mobile site ran a story headlined "A Chink in the Armor." The idiom is commonly used to describe the vulnerability in an otherwise  ... MORE

STANDARD-EXAMINER: End DUI Checkpoints

What ever happened to probable cause?   The Utah Legislature is mulling over House Bill 140, which would prohibit law enforcement from setting up DUI checkpoints across the state. Pressure from law enforcement agencies and interest groups may stifle that effort, but it's the correct move. There's no evidence that law enforcement officers, stopping ... MORE

VIDEO: Michael Steele Says Taxes Are Voluntary

NY Times: Big Government Eyeballs Social Media Debates

Keywords like cops and marijuana raise eyebrows. Analysts for a Department of Homeland Security program that monitors social networks like Twitter and Facebook have been instructed to produce reports on policy debates related to the department, a newly disclosed manual shows. The manual, a 2011 reference guide for analysts working with the  ... MORE        

Louis Loftus: The Drug War Can Endanger Americans

If ruining lives is the goal, the drug war is a success.  In a debate over the legalization of marijuana, it is common that the side speaking against the motion will often ask as a last resort, "Why should such a thing be made legal?"  Well, to begin with, our society is such that the burden of proof concerning the legality of an act or substance is not on those who ... MORE

Weekly Standard: U.S. Per Capita Debt Worse Than Greece


Joseph Svetlic: Gasoline Prices And Dollar Prices

The real price of gasoline is going down.    It's not that gasoline is more expensive; it's just that your dollars are worth less. But neither the media nor the political establishment wants you to realize the real reason Americans are experiencing pain at the pump. Surging gasoline prices are back in the news, and President Obama shows his concern for Americans   ... MORE

VIDEO: Milton Friedman - C-Span Questions

Nathan Lewis: The Crisis Of Capitalism

The crisis of capitalism is a lack of capitalism.     “The American economy increasingly serves only a narrow part of society, and America’s national politics has failed to put the country back on track through honest, open, and transparent problem solving. Too many of America’s elites-among the super-rich, the CEOs, and many of my colleagues in academia-  ... MORE

Huffington Post: Government's Condoms For Kids Program

Available in some California counties if you're 12. A new program supported by the California Department of Public Health will allow teenagers throughout various parts of the state to order condoms online for free. The initiative, launched on Tuesday and available through TeenSource.org, a website that provides information about safe sex for California teens ... MORE

VIDEO: What Is Regulatory Capture?


The inner workings of crony capitalism.

John Carney: Regulatory Capture - Federal Reserve Edition

Regulations are written by special interests. Simon Johnson calculates that Fed board members have met with opponents of financial reform—mostly, bankers—about 10 times more than they have met with advocates. It’s actually quite stunning just how many times representatives of big banks have met with Fed officials on the Volcker Rule. Just on the ... MORE

Andrew Napolitano: What If Democracy Is Bunk?

Do Americans have a fundamental misunderstanding?  What if you are only allowed to vote because it doesn't make a difference? What if no matter how you vote, the elites get to have it their way? What if "one person, one vote" is just a fiction created by the government to induce your compliance? What if democracy is dangerous to personal freedom? ... MORE