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Mark Thornton, adjunct scholar on the Mises Institute and economic advisor to the Office of the Governor, Alabama, writes the following response to an editorial in the Investor’s Business Daily on Japan. IBD correctly argued, with regard to Japan’s economic problems, that flooding the market with newly credited money is no solution. However, in

Not many Americans have heard of Richard Vedder and Lowell Gallaway, but maybe more should. They are the authors of Out of Work , the best economic history of 20th-century America and an indictment of all the monstrous and stupid things our government has done to us. In addition to holding legitimate jobs as professors of economics at Ohio

Al Gore may be dull-witted, and his speech slow and stiff. But despite this pathetic demeanor, Gore is a formidable defender of government. His program to “reinvent” government was a brilliant maneuver to hide a massive increase in government size and power in a guise of phony cuts in government employees and improved government efficiency. Gore

Politicians like Bill Clinton are using the murder of twelve high-school students in Littleton, Colorado, as a call for new gun control measures. This is an attempt to cover up the real culprit, the evil-doers themselves. If, however, we want to locate an institutional source that contributed to the bloodshed, look no further than the government

The Littleton massacre showed the local police and SWAT team to be bumbling fools who were far more concerned about their own safety than that of the students or citizens. Actually, this is not just a single case but a systemic problem in all government law enforcement. In his new book, To Serve and Protect , Bruce Benson demonstrates that the

It was peace and prosperity versus taxation, inflationism, protectionism, imperialism, and war. The good guys win this one and people are applauding in theaters throughout the country. The movie of course is “Star Wars: The Phantom Menace,” one of the finest allegories on classical liberal political economy to ever appear on screen. One has to

You don’t have to be a member of the Christian Coalition to oppose the adoption of a state lottery. In fact, I believe in the unrestricted right to gamble. Despite this, I oppose the adoption of a state lottery. After an in-depth study of all the evidence on the lottery, I cannot find one positive thing to say about the lottery. The state lottery

[NOTE: An earlier version of this piece stirred up controversy and comment on all sides. This longer version addresses some of the points made by critics.] It was peace and prosperity versus taxation, inflationism, protectionism, imperialism, and war. The good guys win this one and people are applauding in theaters throughout the country. The

A crucial part of a national political campaign involves enlisting economists to endorse the candidates’ plan. Every four years, statements are circulated by the campaigns and economists are urged to sign up. Mises Institute adjunct scholar Mark Thornton, though certainly not a supporter of Gore, would not, as a matter of principle, sign the Bush

The Supreme Court has declined to put the antitrust case against Microsoft on fast track, decreasing the chances that the lower court and the antitrust division of the Justice Department will succeed in their efforts to break the company into two parts. To understand why this is a victory for consumers, consider a case 50 years ago when the