The NY Times is reporting that billionaires Eli Broad and Bill Gates are “ joining forces for a $60 million foray into politics in an effort to vault education high onto the agenda of the 2008 presidential race. †What appears to be an extension of their philanthropic activities is simply seed money for the next political solution to failing
Bill Steigerwald, associate editor, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, puts the horrible Virginia Tech shooting in its almost-forgotten historical context . On March 18, 1927, Andrew Kehoe, board member of Bath Consolidated Schools, Bath Township, Michigan, carried out a massacre that killed 45, including 38 grade-school children. Though, unlike Cho
Ludwig von Mises warned of the unintended consequences that result from government interventions . In line with his warnings is the misallocation resulting from malinvestment by government in activities that are not the best use of scarce resources. These malinvestments create capital structures unsupported by real wants and desires. Bust comes
I picked up a new vice a month ago: homemade espresso. Of course, to enjoy this delight, I first had to purchase an espresso machine. Like almost every product on the market, a wide range of espresso machines is available. A simple online search reveals prices ranging from $29.99 to well over $1000. As a certified cheapo, I spent just a little
While you might not be a fan of mellow saxophones playing in various elevators, you may have read about the copyright establishment suing dentist offices over unlicensed use of music in the waiting room. And you have seen how hosting a Super Bowl party can result in lawsuits for using TVs that are illegally large . N ow this IP regime is targeting
Yesterday I stopped at an RV/boating store to buy a 40-amp fuse for my camper. Right after I walked into the store, another man, along with his son, entered looking for a place to register his boat. Two sales clerks were available, so we both got immediate attention. The clerk waiting on me said that her store does not stock the type of fuse I was
OK, melting ice and potential oil in the Arctic have brought out the worst in neighboring governments. ( U.S. expedition mapping the Arctic ) But, I have to ask, “What’s in it for me?” There are three possible outcomes: ownership of the oil-rich land is given to me (highly unlikely); it’s given to another individual, or group of individuals, who
The International Agency of Research on Cancer , the cancer arm of the World Health Organization, will be adding overnight shift work as a probable carcinogen . A likely reason for increased incidents of cancer in night workers: reduced production of melatonin — a naturally-produced hormone that can suppress tumor development — due to exposure to
In an editorial in today’s Columbus Dispatch , Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., and editors take credit card companies to task for raising the interest rate of certain cardholders. Sure, it’s always easy — and politically effective — to attack big business, but Levin and the Dispatch editors missed the other half of the equation: the cardholder. Here is
OK, air travel can be a mess. There is nothing so frustrating as delays, especially delays on the tarmac. To some, this is a reason to have government create and enforce a so-called passenger bill of rights. In fact, New York is just days away from being the first state to have such positive rights enforced by the power of law. That said, we
What is the Mises Institute?
The Mises Institute is a non-profit organization that exists to promote teaching and research in the Austrian School of economics, individual freedom, honest history, and international peace, in the tradition of Ludwig von Mises and Murray N. Rothbard.
Non-political, non-partisan, and non-PC, we advocate a radical shift in the intellectual climate, away from statism and toward a private property order. We believe that our foundational ideas are of permanent value, and oppose all efforts at compromise, sellout, and amalgamation of these ideas with fashionable political, cultural, and social doctrines inimical to their spirit.