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Economics
Carl Menger, Individualism,
Marginal Utility, and the Revival of Economics:
April 4, 2006:
G.
Stolyarov II writes of the great Austrian economist Carl Menger
(1840-1921) and the way in which he resolved severe inconsistencies in
the Classical economists' theory of value. Menger's methodological
individualism, methodological subjectivism, and contextually
individually objective view of values led him to develop a realistic
view of marginal utility and resolve the Classical economists'
water-diamond paradox.
Does the Tying and Bundling of Products Harm
Consumers?:
April 4, 2006:
This
press release from the Molinari Economic Institute defends Microsoft
against its persecutors in the European Commission-- economically
unenlightened regulators who object to Microsoft's bundling of software
products for sale to willing consumers who would be benefited by such
bundling.
Atlas Forced into Early
Retirement:
April 5, 2006:
Dr.
Edward Hudgins exposes a blatantly, unapologetically immoral,
paternalistic study by economists Joel Slemrod and Daniel Hammermesh--
snobbish parasites who try to justify taxing producers at extremely
high rates by claiming to be protecting them from "workaholism." It is
critical for us to counter the evil of this study-- its blatant hatred
for productivity and for producers who love what they do.
Filosofy
Entities and Spatial
Continuity:
April 4, 2006:
G.
Stolyarov II supplements his
Rational Cosmology
with a discussion of another ubiquitous quality of
every entity: spatial continuity. He uses this insight to show how
heterogeneous entities-- combinations of simpler entities-- can exist
as entities in their own right-- provided they are spatially
continuous. By the same criterion, Mr. Stolyarov disqualifies "the
universe" from being an entity, because "it" would not be spatially
continuous.
Doubt the Action Axiom? Try to
Disprove It:
April 5, 2006:
At the
core of praxeology lies the incontrovertible proposition that humans
act. Action is the purposeful employment of means to achieve ends in
accord with the actor's values. The existence of action is axiomatic;
the very attempt to deny it will result in its affirmation. Here, G.
Stolyarov II defends this validation of the action axiom — a validation
that has been criticized as a self-referential statement.
Politics
Loathing, Lies, and Liberation
Theology:
April 4, 2006:
Doe Run
Peru-- a company that has exercised immense social responsibility in
dramatically improving the quality of life in the town where it
performs mining operations-- has come under unjust attack by Oxfam
environmentalists and quasi-Marxist "liberation theologians," writes
Paul Driessen. It is time to defend the people of La Oroya, Peru-- who
overwhelmingly support Doe Run Peru-- against intrusive activists with
no stake in their well-being.
Defending GMO against the Culture of
Precaution:
April
13, 2006:
French
senators are considering an alarming proposition that would vastly
limit the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in food. This
press release by the Molinari Economic Institute defends the benefits
of GMOs in terms of increased standards of human living, while
condemning the "precautionary principle," which-- if applied-- would
halt all technological progress that might have an even remote
potential of danger.
Science
Vitamin B17: Cure for Cancer?:
April
4, 2006:
Pseudonymous
Contributor argues that the widespread existence of cancer among modern
Western populations can be explained by the deficiency of a vitamin
that has been almost entirely edited out of the modern diet-- B17.
While The Rational Argumentator does not agree with the premise of this
article, it is published in accord with The Rational Argumentator's
commitment to free expression of intelligently articulated viewpoints.
Embryonic Stem Cell Hucksters Exploit
Paralysis:
April
13, 2006:
Michael
Fumento debunks myths spread by the mainstream media about the
miraculous effects of embryonic stem-cell (ECS) research-- which the
media uses to justify extensive government funding to ECS research. In
fact, ECS has not shown to cure a single case of paralysis, while adult
stem-cell research (ACS)-- ignored by the mass media-- has been curing
cases for decades.
WiFi False Fears:
April
13, 2006:
Some
Canadian government officials in the city of Toronto-- urged on by
vehement opponents of progress-- are seriously considering barring
access to WiFi connections to their citizens. Michael Fumento refutes
all urban myths about the dangers of WiFi devices; WiFi, after all, is
just another radio frequency which enables easier connection to the
Internet. The true danger lies in heeding the suggestions of those who
view every new technological advance as suspect.
"All
men ought to live for themselves, not against others."
~ G.
Stolyarov II