At Jacobin Magazine, Luke Savage argues that against capitalists on the moon. He isn’t happy that billionaires like Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk are working to make space travel commercially viable. Space, he argues, should not be a playground exclusively for the wealthy: What is presently called “private space exploration,” after all, is in practice…
Merriam-Webster states that an infodemic typically refers to a rapid and far-reaching spread of both accurate and inaccurate information about something, such as a disease. As facts, rumors, and fears mix and disperse, it becomes difficult to learn essential information about an issue. Since the beginning of the COVID pandemic, Americans have been overwhelmed with…
Defenders of exclusionary zoning argue that if that institution is eliminated, neighborhoods will be overrun with multi-family housing. Quiet neighborhoods where children can play in the front yard will be transformed with increased traffic, denser housing, and a myriad of other ills. Zoning, they claim, is necessary to have the kind of neighborhood that they…
Defenders of exclusionary zoning argue that if that institution is eliminated, neighborhoods will be overrun with multi-family housing. Children will no longer be able to ride their bikes because of increased traffic, denser housing, and a myriad of other ills. Zoning, they claim, is necessary to have the kind of neighborhood that they desire. Non-coercive…
Many conservatives oppose vaccine mandates, regardless of its source. They see no difference between a government mandate and a mandate issued by a private employer. The failure to discriminate—to recognize the differences between two or more things—isn’t surprising. Many conservatives do the same when they claim Big Tech is engaged in censorship. Certainly, mandates issued…
In 1850, the French economist, Claude Frédéric Bastiat, wrote an essay titled “That Which is Seen and That Which is not Seen.” The essay is timeless, and it is particularly enlightening at a time when government spending has reached new levels of profligacy. The introduction to the essay lays out its central point: In the…
This is a guest post by JP Miller In late January we witnessed a brazen low point in the history of the United States. President Joseph Biden announced the retirement of Justice Stephen Breyer from the Supreme Court. He would be examining candidates with the best minds, the highest moral character and best records of…
If you examine nearly any debate regarding government policy, almost all of the discussion revolves around government imposing more restrictions and controls on businesses and individuals. It might seem that proposals to eliminate single-family zoning (SFZ) are an exception and a move towards greater respect for individual rights. But that appearance is a mirage. Most…
While all occupational licensing infringes on our freedom to produce and trade, the licensing of some professions has a degree of plausibility. We don’t want an auto mechanic to perform surgery on us. Absent occupational licensing, the argument goes, auto mechanics could offer to perform surgery, and nobody would be the wiser. This argument implies…
Of the many schemes perpetrated by government, one of the most insidious is occupational licensing. Occupational licensing requires individuals to obtain the government’s permission to produce and earn a living. Defenders of occupational licensing claim that it protects “the public” from incompetent and unscrupulous professionals. The truth is, occupational licensing does nothing to protect the…
A Scottish man was recently convicted for sending a tweet that was deemed offensive. The tweet was disgusting, saying that the only good British soldier is a dead one. Freedom of speech protects our right to make offensive and disgusting statements. Rather than prosecute those who are intentionally offensive, we should recognize such statements for…
In an executive order last year, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott prohibited private businesses from requiring a “vaccine passport” for employees and customers. President Joe Biden wants to force businesses with more than 100 employees to require vaccines. Despite these different approaches to vaccine mandates, Abbott and Biden are in agreement on the fundamental issue. When…