Some libertarians know of the historian Gabriel Kolko for his work on American economic history, namely, The Triumph of Conservatism: A Re-interpretation of American History, 1900-1916 (1963) and Railroads and Regulation, 1877-1916 (1965). His most recent book, World in Crisis: The End of the American Century (London: Pluto Press, 2009, distributed in the U.S. by Palgrave Macmillan) is a collection of essays written between 2004 and 2008, one of which offers an informed and insightful commentary on the future of Israel.
Friday, September 25, 2009 - 00:23
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Here is a useful resource on Sex Offender Laws. And here is a short history that explains how in mid-twentieth century California they were used to harrass gay men minding their own business.
And if you scroll down, you'll read how in 1951 Governor Earl Warren, later Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, vetoed a bill that would have created a way for sex offenders, most of whom were gay men convicted of consensual sexual conduct with other gay men, to avoid going to prison. Go here for the contemporary report from the Los Angeles Times (pdf file).
And if you scroll down, you'll read how in 1951 Governor Earl Warren, later Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, vetoed a bill that would have created a way for sex offenders, most of whom were gay men convicted of consensual sexual conduct with other gay men, to avoid going to prison. Go here for the contemporary report from the Los Angeles Times (pdf file).
Monday, September 14, 2009 - 12:52
Sunday, September 13, 2009 - 01:03
Who called Stalin in 1926"the gravedigger of the revolution" to his face and lived to tell the tale? He died in 1970 aged 81.
Go here for the answer. An interesting life. And observe what radicalized him in 1911. And what was that campaign notable for? The first aerial bombing in history.
Go here for the answer. An interesting life. And observe what radicalized him in 1911. And what was that campaign notable for? The first aerial bombing in history.
Thursday, September 10, 2009 - 00:13
Yet another example of the unintended consequences of state intervention.
Thursday, September 10, 2009 - 00:25
Patrick Hayes explains that, contrary to Gordon Brown's claims, no Afghan has been involved in the terror attacks of the past 10 years.
Monday, September 7, 2009 - 09:19
"Ferris Bueller famously said, 'Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.' In the twenty-first century the U.S. foreign policy has moved pretty fast: from conservatism to neo-conservatism to liberal neoconservatism. To keep up, we need to look around, or we will miss the big picture: that U.S. foreign policy is moving toward colonialism."
Michael Schwartz writes about the paradox of liberal foreign policy here.
Michael Schwartz writes about the paradox of liberal foreign policy here.
Sunday, September 6, 2009 - 00:21
Sunday, August 30, 2009 - 00:46
David Goldhill, a business executive and Democrat, has written a thoughtful essay about American health care.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009 - 01:47
I wouldn't wish it otherwise. After all, Ted Kennedy didn't achieve the presidency so he was never a war criminal. And he helped deregulate interstate trucking and airlines and liberalize immigration.
That said, younger readers might like to get up to speed on his youthful misadventures by reading Zad Rust's best seller from 1971, the Tedrows' expose from 1976, or Leo Damore's indictment from 1988.
That said, younger readers might like to get up to speed on his youthful misadventures by reading Zad Rust's best seller from 1971, the Tedrows' expose from 1976, or Leo Damore's indictment from 1988.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009 - 16:13
Hugh Miles asks Who put the bomb on Pan Am 103?.
Although this essay was published in June 2007, it is well worth reading and very pertinent to the current controversy.
Although this essay was published in June 2007, it is well worth reading and very pertinent to the current controversy.
Monday, August 24, 2009 - 17:32
Atheist Brendan O'Neill explains why he"would far rather go back to the little church in north London this weekend and listen to the priest talk about 'love' and 'redemption' than watch or read or listen to any more shrill New Atheist propaganda."
Friday, August 21, 2009 - 00:27
"We get so pissed off when politicians portray us as victims," says Anna Read of the New Zealand Prostitutes Collective.
Read here how legalizing brothels in 2003 worked out.
Read here how legalizing brothels in 2003 worked out.
Friday, August 21, 2009 - 00:24
"Huge job cuts" for the British public sector.
Mind you, I'll believe it when I see it.
Mind you, I'll believe it when I see it.
Friday, August 21, 2009 - 00:24
Jamie Whyte explains why it is wrong to target bankers' bonuses.
"The financial crisis was caused not by bankers' incentive plans but by a systematic failure to price risk correctly. Without accurately priced risk, there is no way of giving bankers the right incentives, however long the period over which their performance is measured. And with accurately priced risk, there is no incentive problem to be solved."
"The financial crisis was caused not by bankers' incentive plans but by a systematic failure to price risk correctly. Without accurately priced risk, there is no way of giving bankers the right incentives, however long the period over which their performance is measured. And with accurately priced risk, there is no incentive problem to be solved."
Friday, August 21, 2009 - 00:20
Friday, August 21, 2009 - 13:57
The liberation of Paris.
Meanwhile, some of the"Greatest Generation" were enjoying the spoils of war.
Meanwhile, some of the"Greatest Generation" were enjoying the spoils of war.
Friday, August 21, 2009 - 00:21
Last year, as the financial crisis gathered pace, free market commentators, both conservative and libertarian, would emphasize how federal law and federal agencies had pressured banks and other mortgage lenders into making loans to subprime borrowers who then defaulted as house prices collapsed so causing many banks to go bankrupt.
Today's Financial Times reports here and here that an investigation has shown"[t]he top 25 US originators of subprime mortgages - the risky assets that sparked the global financial crisis - spent almost $370m in Washington over the past decade on lobbying and campaign donations as they tried to ward off tighter regulation of their industry." If true, this doesn't surprise me nor, I suspect, will it astonish many of our readers who are well aware of how big business is usually, perhaps always, in bed with the state and is rarely, if ever, simply the victim of government intervention.
Of course, the two stories are by no means mutually exclusive. Nonetheless, if today's study by the Center for Public Integrity is accurate, it suggests that the narrative free market commentators like to tell fails to provide a full explanation of the subprime mess.
Today's Financial Times reports here and here that an investigation has shown"[t]he top 25 US originators of subprime mortgages - the risky assets that sparked the global financial crisis - spent almost $370m in Washington over the past decade on lobbying and campaign donations as they tried to ward off tighter regulation of their industry." If true, this doesn't surprise me nor, I suspect, will it astonish many of our readers who are well aware of how big business is usually, perhaps always, in bed with the state and is rarely, if ever, simply the victim of government intervention.
Of course, the two stories are by no means mutually exclusive. Nonetheless, if today's study by the Center for Public Integrity is accurate, it suggests that the narrative free market commentators like to tell fails to provide a full explanation of the subprime mess.
Thursday, August 20, 2009 - 23:40
