As Houston continues to deal with the devastation of Hurricane Harvey, Florida stands prepared for the impact of Irma. It is during times of crisis like this, when government feels the greatest need to control, that sound economics is most needed. This is why laws on “price gouging,” no matter their intent, bring tragic consequences. This is also how government intervention in insurance markets has only increased the costs of flooding. Unfortunately, there are still those who see the damage done by these storms as a good thing for the economy. Of course, such a dangerous misunderstanding of economics may qualify such pundits for one of the vacant Federal Reserve positions.
On Mises Weekends, we shift our attention from a natural disaster to a man-made one. Our friend Scott Horton joins Jeff to discuss his important new book — Fools Errand: Time to End the War in Afghanistan This is the definitive treatment of the war itself, the history and factions involved, and the disturbing policy mindset that keeps this deeply unpopular conflict churning. Don’t miss this interview with one of the leading antiwar libertarians of our time.
And in case you missed them, here are this weeks Mises Wire and FedWatch articles, covering a wide array of topics:
- Trump’s Deal With Dems Increases His Power over GOP by Mark Thornton
- Will Low Unemployment Cause Accelerating Inflation? by Frank Shostak
- Slow Wage Growth Could Be Thanks to ‘Sticky Wages’ by Curtis Williams
- Why the War Party Loves to Call Foreign Leaders Insane by Ryan McMaken
- Trump’s Historic Opportunity with the Federal Reserve by Tho Bishop
- The Progressive Era Still Haunts Us Today by Patrick Newman
- Stanley Fischer Is Out at the Fed by C.Jay Engel
- Bank of Canada Raises Interest Rates ... Again by Caleb McMillan
- 3 Good Things about “Price Gouging” by Robert P. Murphy
- How the Feds Blocked Effective Flood Insurance by Dale Steinreich
- Markets, Not Government, Improve Race Relations by Richard M. Ebeling
- Bank of Mexico: Bread Today, Hunger Tomorrow by Edgar Ortiz
- Why Government Cannot Be Run Like a Business by Peter G. Klein
- The Broken-Window Fallacy Is Still Alive and Well by Robert A. McKeown
- Does Government Spending Create More Economic Growth? by Frank Shostak
- Public Policy Always Costs Somebody Something by Gary Galles
