The original Mont Pelerin Society meeting in 1947 featured Ludwig von Mises, whose warnings about the dangers of socialism and totalitarianism had gone unheeded. In the wreckage of World War II, the truth of his message should have been obvious. It wasn't.
Audio Mises Wire
Audio recordings of Mises Wire articles, offering contemporary news and opinion through the lens of Austrian economics and libertarian political economy.
Even though DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) has taken a beating in some state legislatures, it still has a corrupting influence, especially in higher education. As Murray Rothbard pointed out, egalitarians are “at war with nature.”
Modern American culture is statist to the core. The typical school curriculum tells students that capitalism is evil and socialism is good. This only gets worse in college.
Mainstream economists often base their analysis upon assumptions that do not square with reality. Austrian economics, on the other hand, is built upon realistic assumptions and the acknowledgement that good economics must reflect human action.
While most of us know George Orwell as an authoritative critic of totalitarianism, few people know he was a committed socialist and a lifelong defender of communist Leon Trotsky. While he understood totalitarianism, he never understood socialism.
Not all news from the gold and monetary fronts is bad. In fact, gold made a number of advancements in seven states, including exemptions from taxes and attempts by states to restrict Federal Reserve behavior. Gold is alive and well.
Employing the Labor Theory of Value, Marx claimed that entrepreneurial profits arise from exploitation of workers. In reality, entrepreneurs earn profits when they correctly gauge markets. Exploitation has nothing to do with it.
Progressives blame the free market for insulin prices and want to impose price controls. But, government regulation is to blame.
The watchword among progressives this election season is: “Nothing less than our democracy is at stake.” In truth, democracy itself is not in danger, but one can accurately say that “democracy,” as practiced in the US, endangers our lives.
Birkin bags are pricey and the producer restricts its potential buyers. Unfortunately, disgruntled customers who don’t want to follow the company’s rules are now appealing to US antitrust law.
Wage differences between men and women often are automatically attributed to sex discrimination against women. However, as research has shown time and again, other factors are at work.
Buchanan and Tullock‘s The Calculus of Consent influentially applies economic ideas to politics, focusing on methodological individual. However, there are a few pitfalls about which readers should be aware.
Historical revisionism is nothing new, and recent attempts to label an “antiracist” approach to history have wrongly been called “revisionist.” To better understand revisionism, one must first be grounded in reality, then apply reality-based thought to studying the past.
Modern progressives are obsessed with collective guilt, demanding that Americans pay reparations for slavery even though it ended in the US 160 years ago. However, by employing collective guilt and collective punishment, those seeking reparations violate natural law.
The darling of America‘s political elites, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, now touts a “Five-Point Plan” that surely will extend the war and ultimately make his country even worse off. It is time to end this farce.
The political theorist Anthony de Jasay takes on the left‘s ideas of equality, and David Gordon is there to agree—and disagree. Jasay likens the left‘s view of equality to the Indian Rope Trick.
While people who “prep” for disaster (called preppers) are ridiculed by political elites and their media, their actions are perfectly rational. In this article, economist Mark Thornton explains why prepping for natural disasters makes economic sense.
Using state power to enforce social orthodoxy is always a recipe for disaster. Radical Republican governments in the post-war South attempted to do just that, sowing seeds of hatred and discord in the process.
The Fed lowers interest rates ostensibly to “stimulate” the economy. But while the Fed claims it is strengthening the economy, it actually weakens it through its easy-money policies.
Tariffs don‘t just raise consumer prices. They also affect capital flows and, on numerous occasions, have triggered stock market crises. What tariffs don‘t bring is prosperity.
