Federalism, which Felix Morley called “the distinctively American contribution to political art,” arose from our founders’ desire to limit government’s ability to harm its citizens. The Constitution restricted nondelegated powers to states and individuals in their private arrangements, empowering citizens by allowing easier escape from abusive government by “voting with their feet” for jurisdictions with less hostile governance. That set a tighter limit on government ability to impose burdens that outweighed benefits. Government inefficiency and redistribution beyond what citizens support (which often overlap, as inefficiency is often redistribution toward unionized…

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The Washington Post is outraged that Donald Trump has sullied one of Washington’s most hallowed honors—Presidential Medals of Freedom. After the White House announced plans to bestow the medals on two Republican members of Congress and a football coach, the Post thundered that “Trump just underlines his own unworthiness when he makes a mockery of the Medal of Freedom….This president cannot be trusted to hand out medals.” The Post editorial concluded with the obligatory uplift of the season: “Thankfully, the Oval Office will soon be occupied by a president—himself a…

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Many observers of international affairs assume that larger, more populous states are necessarily more powerful. But the reality is wealth and economic development are the most critical factors in securing true military power. Original Article: “When It Comes to National Defense, Bigger Isn’t Always Better” This Audio Mises Wire is generously sponsored by Christopher Condon. Narrated by Michael Stack.   Source link

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Both spouses have become abusive, verbally and physically. Exchanging blows left and right, both literally and metaphorically speaking. There’s no common ground to be found, and even if there were, at this point neither side is interested in entertaining it. And yet a narrative continues to be pushed by politicians on both sides: unity. We must find a way to unify, they say. Biden seems to preach it every single day. “We’re going to be unified whether you deplorables like it or not” is my interpretation of his speeches. And as…

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Bland Fanatics: Liberals, Race, and Empireby Pankaj MishraFarrar, Straus and Giroux, 2020218 pages Pankaj Mishra dislikes the free market, and he blames it for the imperial conquests of the nineteenth century and after. But much of his book can be read as an extended commentary on some remarks by the great champion of the free market Ludwig von Mises. In Liberalism (1927), Mises says: The considerations and objectives that have guided the colonial policy of the European powers since the age of the great discoveries stand in the sharpest contrast to all the principles…

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