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Google’s antitrust woes are only the most recent example of private firms using government power to stifle their competition. This story is as old as governments and commerce, but even though the details change, the basic narrative stays the same. With that in mind, why not save some writing time by distilling intervention down to its basic

In the 1970s, Penthouse magazine had a reputation for featuring the ideas of unorthodox political thinkers and movements. That’s why in October 1976 it interviewed Murray Rothbard to ask about the rapidly-growing philosophy of libertarianism. This interview is now difficult to find, but was recently excavated from the archives at the Mises

Readers of this blog may remember previous posts about George R.R. Martin’s fantasy epic  A Song of Ice and Fire  and its TV adaptation,  Game of Thrones . Over the past few years, libertarians have enjoyed writing about the series’ political and economic themes, and Carmen Dorobăţ and I have recently collected our writing into a forthcoming book

A couple of months ago I wrote about Mike Watts, the businessman who built a private toll road to replace a public road destroyed by a landslide. Because local government couldn’t fix the damaged road for almost a year, drivers were obliged to take an extremely inefficient detour, greatly increasing commute times and other transportation costs. 

This documentary takes only about 15 minutes to watch, and presents a good overview of business cycles caused by central banks. Mises and Rothbard feature prominently.  

In our age of technological marvels, it’s easy to be in awe of science, and even to believe that science in and of itself is responsible for the high living standards enjoyed in some nations. Likewise, it’s all too easy to see poverty and economic stagnation as stemming from a lack of scientific progress, and conclude that to make the world a

It’s the age-old question: is success the result of natural talent or simply hard work? This problem is especially important for entrepreneurs, whose success and failure can make a world of difference to the welfare of society. In fact, doubly so, given the recent emphasis—especially in universities—on encouraging students to be more

Publishing new research is a vital part of advancing Austrian economics and building the case for a liberal society. That’s why, in addition to writing for the Mises Wire , most of its contributors also do academic work intended to engage the mainstream in economics and add to the knowledge developed by previous generations. It’s this work that

The economic causes and consequences of immigration are among the most important issues facing the world today. Both pro- and anti-immigration advocates are digging in their heels, and both sides look increasingly unlikely to relent. Despite the bleak outlook, however, there is still hope for a peaceful and charitable discussion of the economics

Today’s Mises Daily outlines some of Mises’s ideas about the economics of immigration. As always, Mises is thoughtful and perceptive, and continues to offer fresh insight decades after his death. Mises wrote voluminously and on virtually every important topic in economics, so it’s unsurprising that not all his comments would fit in a short