Blog Review 842

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While everyone is haring off trying to repeat or even outdo the New Deal, there's still a lot of controversy about whether it actually worked and if it did, which parts did?

What, in the words of a modern liberal, distinguishes a modern liberal from a classical. Arguing back is so easy that it is left as an exercise for the reader.

For example, we hear a little about government failure, but what do you do when a government is actually crazy?

Or even crazed?

Or, can't we make the modern liberal system simple enough that the incoming Treasury Secretary can understand it?

A very good point about stability.

And finally, on occupied space.

Blog Review 841

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A party game: since the millennium, can anyone point to an advance rather than retreat of civil liberties?

So will Gordon Brown get howled down the next time he breaches this Treasury rule?

An update from the Department of Wibble.

This won't last long. An outbreak of common sense in government.

A return to normal, an outbreak of nonsense in government.

If only someone would tell our own harpies. Slavery and sex work are not the same thing.

And finally, we'll miss him when he's gone.

ISOS: 24 February 2009

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We have set the date for the next Independent Seminar on the Open Society (ISOS), our one-day seminar for sixth-formers. It will run from 10:30am until 4:30pm including breaks and lunch.

ISOS is named after the seminal book: The Open Society and its Enemies, written by the philosopher Sir Karl Popper. It explores the principles and practicalities of an open, free and tolerant society.

ISOS achieves this through a crammed programme of household-name speakers – including politicians from all sides of politics, national media personalities, think-tankers, economists, and business leaders.

Previous speakers have included, George Osborne MP, Andrew Marr, Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, John Whittingdale MP, Boris Johnson MP, Andrew Neil, Paul Ormerod and many, many more.

If you are a student or teacher and would like to attend this event, please visit the ISOS section of the website here.

Blog Review 840

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That Czech sculpture. As in the earlier blog, it's all a most fun scam that's been played. Anyone want to speculate on whether the politicians and bureaucrats will see the funny side? Show they have a sense of humour?

Less amusing: unreason is now the basis for legislation.

What if this stimulus might have negative effects? Like, damage long term growth? Something which is far more important than a couple of years of below trend output.

"It takes a heap of Harberger triangles to fill an Okun's gap." Yes, but how many is a heap?

A good example of what long term growth actually means using refrigerators as that example.

On how to spot a bubble and what to do when you do.

And finally, new dictionary entries.

Entropa

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Whether or not it's good art, the Entropa installation by Czech artist David Cerny is pure genius. The Czech Republic should be made permanent holders of the EU Presidency.

Blog Review 839

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Just another reason why a great splurge of Keyensian stimulus spending won't in fact work.

Identifying the partisan hack rather depends upon your definition of partisan hack.

A warning for those tempted into journalism. Make sure you check what the other people are going to be writing about on the same subject.

What super-contangos can tell us about the oil market.

Speaking truth to power.

The truth about how you might help one less fortunate then yourself: invest in them.

And finally, how to waste energy.

Is Atlas shrugging?

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“Who is John Galt?" This is the opening line to Atlas Shrugged, a novel by Ayn Rand, one in which the world collapses under the weight of an oppressive robber class of politicians/bureaucrats. Fraser Nelson wrote on the Spectator Blog, having linked to a WSJ article, about the similarities of this day-and-age to those in Rand’s fictional world.

The story in Atlas Shrugged isn’t quite the same, the governments of that world appropriate successful businesses so as to enable the redistribution of the profits whereas now they are bailing out unsuccessful businesses. Quite the reverse. With productive taxpayers bailing out unsuccessful business! But the underlying theme of the book is that the government isn’t there to help and in the end it is not only a hindrance but more likely to be the harbinger of failure. Rand draws into her characters the tenets of her philosophy of objectivism and how their selfish disdain for others is ultimately the driver of their success. Though she venerates selfishness to an extreme, it is understandable in the climate of hatred held towards those that achieve.

This book, though not a direct warning to us, holds within it an insight into how those on the left view the average human, and how the average human can be bribed to support their ideals. It’s a future that no rational person would want to live in, not unless they knew the way to Cactus Gulch.

If you would like to further your interest in Ayn Rand then the ASI is hosting an event on February 10th. Dr Yaron Brook, Executive Director of the Ayn Rand Centre for Individual Rights will be speaking for around 45 minutes on Capitalism without Guilt: The Moral Case for Freedom. The event will be from 6pm for 6.30pm, following on Dr Brook’s speech there will be the usual question-and-answer session and drinks reception. If you would like to attend then please contact Philip Salter at events@old.adamsmith.org.

Blog Review 838

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Exogenous dosn't mean quite what some people seem to think exogenous means.

US job losses are high, yes, but how high? Compared to what?

Badger your library to purchase this book. Hey, greater economic literacy is a public good!

Yes, minimum wages do indeed have deleterious effects.

Comparing government to a dog. No, it's not the drooling part nor the fleas.

A progressive gets mugged by reality.

And finally, it's Motown's fiftieth. This is also good.

Quote of the week

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The government is bailing out Wall Street for being evil and the car companies for being stupid. But print journalism brings you Paul Krugman and Anna Quindlen. Also, in 1898 Joseph Pulitzer of the New York World and William Randolph Hearst of the New York Journal started the Spanish-American War. All of the Lehman Brothers put together couldn't cause as much evil stupidity as that.

by P.J. O'Rourke,   Bail Me Out, Mr. Paulson, The Weekly Standard

Blog Review 837

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Here's a bold prediction. One or other of the curent euro are members will try to return to their own domestic currency this year.

Why is it that politicians don't put their money where their mouths are?

A long but sound essay on the mess that is drugs prohibition in the UK.

There's something really very different about the pattern of unemployment in the US this time around. There's a huge gender gap.

Contrary to intuition, a brain drain can be a boost to the country having it.

Cause and effect again. Do obese people have worse cancer treatment outcomes because they are obese....or because they are not treated as if they are obese?

And finally, a lesson for political spinmeisters everywhere.