I feel the need to clarify my earlier post on “Fairness and Equality” due to the many and varied comments on it and some misunderstanding. At the outset, I will say that in a blog post it is impossible to address every aspect of a subject or every objection. So the reader must read the […]
Archives
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Fairness and Equality: Part 2
16 Dec 2013
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Pope Francis recently released his Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii Gaudium, which condemns “unfettered capitalism, “(as labeled by the press). Pope Francis seemingly condemns something that never has been, nor does anyone seriously call for: a laissez faire market devoid of morals or any constraining laws. Indeed, the rule of law and morality are necessary for healthy […]
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In their new book, published by Crossway in 2013, The Poverty of Nations: A Sustainable Solution, the authors Wayne Grudem and Barry Asmus tackle the issue of whether one can make a distinctively Christian defense of markets and economic growth. The book involves a unique combination of authors and perspectives. Grudem is a well-known and […]
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The US Government and Romans 13: 1-7
09 Oct 2013
How happy are you with the federal government? The government is partially shutdown. If Congress and the President are not able to negotiate a settlement to raise the debt ceiling, greater fiscal problems are on the horizon. The Affordable Care Act is more and more showing its strangling effect on our economy. The Dodd-Frank Act […]
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I have heard much talk in the last few months to the effect that market advocates, conservatives (in the American sense) or classical liberals (to use a broader sense) have failed to make their case. They have not “sold” their ideas well, to use a marketing analogy. Alberto-Benegas Lynch has addressed this issue in an […]
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Book Reviews and Such
07 Oct 2013
Last time I wrote about what I was reading, I said I would next read a new book entitled Anti-Capitalism by Simon Tormey. I changed my mind and have waded into the second of a projected four volume work (maybe six) by Deidre McCloskey. The first was Bourgeois Virtues and was the beginning of a detailed historical and […]
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Government Tyranny and Economic Life
27 Sep 2013
There was an interesting article here by Peter Gumbel http://blogs.reuters.com/great-debate/2013/09/25/with-unemployment-high-france-forces-stores-to-close-early/ earlier this week on what France is doing in the face of high unemployment. Before you read, remember this is France, since the nineteenth century, one of the most socialist (small “c”) nations in Europe, allowing for brief intervals of sanity. It appears that Parisian officlals–the only […]
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Nudge, Nudge
25 Sep 2013
Economics is often thought of as a quasi-hard science; a field where number crunching and rationality yield positive and true results. While Ph.D.s in the field acknowledge that it is often hard to account for all the variables, in the past they would argue that if it were possible to account for all factors, a mathematical […]
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During President Obama’s two campaigns, Republican critics suggested his signature health care law, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) was socialism, since the government was trying to centrally plan 1/7 of the economy. Naturally Democrats reject that characterization, and accuse the Republicans of demonizing the president. Rather than focus on the question […]
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The Winds of Change?
13 Sep 2013
From today’s Wall Street Journal: Poll Finds Republicans Gain Favor on Key Issues.
Bert Wheeler
Jeff Haymond
Marc Clauson
Mark Caleb Smith
Tom Mach