Media and Culture

There is no surer guide to the principles of political liberty than the Federalist Papers; no more penetrating and imaginative study of the forces that may wreck or sap liberty than de Tocqueville's great classic.

It is a feast for the eyes and ears, a look at how dramatically and sweepingly different our times are in so many ways, and yet how the themes of corruption, deception, and lies are persistent wherever public and private violence against person and property rears its ugly head.

Reisman shows himself ever alert to defend capitalism against objection, and I found especially impressive his demolition of Marx's argument that profit derives from exploiting labor.

From the point of view of a cynical world the American who entered two world wars and won them both, when his own interest was not paramount, was either an inscrutable hypocrite or an unbelievable romantic, and in either case a dangerous possessor of the world's ultimate power.

The battle between Rand and Branden, moreover, is really no contest. Rand created something, whereas Branden has lived his entire life parasitically off Rand, first as a worshipful disciple and cult organizer, then as a neo-Randian shrink who set up shop in California with the solid initial base of the RandCult's Nathaniel Branden Institute mailing list.

Capitalism delivers the goods, and it does so in abundance. Interventionist alternatives do not.

If we look beneath the surface of our public affairs, we can discern one fundamental fact, namely, a great redistribution of power between society

"Alain de Botton is not an economist by training, but he clearly understands the division of labor (he even uses the term!) and is a keen observer of human action and the human condition."

So despite the constant outrage and occasional legal hassles, the lack of copyright enforcement in the pornographic movie and entertainment business creates "an industry that is more innovative, creates new products and adopts new technologies more quickly, and for which the reduction in distribution cost has resulted in more output at lower prices and a more diverse product,"

"The truth behind most of the regulations we have today is that there was already a social and cultural movement against the dangers featured in Madmen."