Return to Issue CXXIII.       View TRA's Principal Index.         Proceed to Issue CXXV.

TRA's Yahoo! Group.            View TRA's Old Master Index.       TRA's Allied Organizations.

Recommend This Page.       View TRA's List of Contributors.   Submit Items to TRA.

The Fiscal Restriction Amendment:

G. Stolyarov II

November 10, 2007:

Mr. Stolyarov presents an easily accessible version of the Fiscal Restriction Amendment, his simple and effective plan to halt the growth of government, reduce government’s size and scope, get politicians to start actively limiting government, eliminate deficit spending, pay off the national debt,  fight inflation, get rid of taxes altogether, and bring about a truly free society. A more thorough exposition of how the FRA would accomplish these objectives can be found in "A Plan for Cutting Big Government."

 

Economics

 

Perpetual Trade Deficits Can Be Good:

Dr. Robert P. Murphy

November 10, 2007:

A large trade deficit — even one that persists for decades — is not necessarily bad or unsustainable. As Dr. Robert Murphy shows in this essay, if the Austro-libertarians ever realized their dream of fully free markets in any part of the world, the resulting society would almost certainly have massive trade deficits — and this would be a natural reflection of its economic might.

 

Worst Recession in 25 Years?:
Dr. Robert P. Murphy

November 10, 2007:

On September 18 the Fed cut its target for the fed funds rate by 50 basis points (0.5 percentage points), from 5.25% to 4.75%. The move surprised many analysts who had been expecting a more modest cut of 25 basis points. For those versed in the Austrian theory of the business cycle, as developed by Ludwig von Mises and elaborated by Friedrich Hayek, the aggressive Fed "stimulus" is ominous indeed. Dr. Robert Murphy fears that not only will it pave the way for much higher price inflation than Americans have seen in decades, but it will also exacerbate what could be the worst recession in twenty-five years.

 

The Money Has to Come From Somewhere:

Rep. Ron Paul, M. D.

November 10, 2007:

The Fed tries to keep up with government’s spending habits, but is sending inaccurate signals to mask bad monetary policy.  Ultimately, writes Rep. Ron Paul, we’ll get back on track financially only when government spending is held in check and the free market controls monetary policy, not the other way around.

 

Not Peak Oil, But Lots More Oil:

Alan Caruba

November 10, 2007:

Alan Caruba writes that there are billions more barrels of oil to be found in the world, whether it’s in the Middle East, Africa, Russia, Venezuela, or much of the yet to be geologically researched map of the world. Yet another way of looking at the myth of Peak Oil is that it is now sustained, not by facts, but by public relations in the form of new books, new studies, international symposia and conferences, websites devoted to the subject, and all the ways the idea is maintained despite its questionable merit. Like environmentalism, it is less a science and more a new form of religion in which one takes its “facts” on faith. Selective computer models keep producing these “facts”, but events like the September 2006 discovery by Chevron of a huge deep water new field in the Gulf of Mexico keeps contradicting them.

 

Politics

 

Pinellas County Eviscerates Free Speech:

G. Stolyarov II

November 10, 2007:

Mr. Stolyarov discusses the travesty committed by officials in Pinellas County, Florida, who violated an individual’s right to post political signs on his own property. The individual, John, put up Ron Paul signs on his fence – whereafter the signs were taken down by a county official without John receiving any kind of notification. Upon replacing the signs, John was informed by the county that he would need to remove them or face a fine of $1000 per day. Anyone who still cherishes the founding principles and inalienable liberties at the heart of this country should be appalled at Pinellas County’s exercise of arbitrary power.

 

The Language of Government Decisions:

Ben O'Neill

November 10, 2007:

In the eyes of governments, the private sector is a big buffet table. The enticing cuisine is just sitting there, waiting to be dished out to satisfy the appetites of the rent seekers who reinforce government power. This is not merely a consequence of the statist inclinations of the ministers and bureaucrats in power at any given time. In fact, writes Ben O'Neill, the interests of these rent seekers is carefully entrenched in the very fabric and vocabulary of the government decision-making process, where they are routinely consulted as "stakeholders" in decisions that concern their "interests." And of course, this includes decisions that encroach on the rights of property owners to the benefit of these rent seekers, either through restraining the ability of the former to freely use their property, or through outright confiscation.

 

Giuliani is Everyone's Worst Nightmare:

Dr. Chuck Baldwin

November 10, 2007:

Former New York City Mayor and Republican Presidential contender Rudy Giuliani said that he was "liberals' worst nightmare." However, writes Dr. Chuck Baldwin, Rudy Giuliani is everyone's worst nightmare. He is a nightmare for conservatives, Christians, independents, constitutionalists, and for people the world over. Furthermore, Rudy Giuliani is a threat to freedom, constitutional government, the rule of law, traditional morality, and to national sovereignty and independence.

 

The Sunlight Rule:

Rep. Ron Paul, M. D.

November 10, 2007:

Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis famously said “Sunlight is the best disinfectant.”  Indeed, some of the most malignant growth of our government has been nurtured under a cover of darkness. Literally, in the dark hours of the morning at the end of the year, it has become tradition for the Appropriations Committee to rush the famous omnibus bill to the floor for a vote, mere hours after it is introduced. This has long been a concern for Rep. Ron Paul, and for this reason he has reintroduced The Sunlight Rule. (H.RES 63). This proposed rule stipulates that no piece of legislation can be brought before the House of Representatives for a vote unless it has been available to members and staff to read for at least ten days.  Any amendments must be available for at least 72 hours before a vote.

 

Surrender Should Not Be an Option:

Rep. Ron Paul, M. D.

November 10, 2007:

Regarding the neo-conservatives currently in power, Rep. Ron Paul wonders why they are so anxious to surrender our freedoms with legislation like the Patriot Act, a repeal of our 4th amendment rights, executive orders, and presidential signing statements. With politicians like these, who needs terrorists?  Do they think if we destroy our freedoms for the terrorists, they will no longer have a reason to attack us?  This seems the epitome of cowardice coming from those who claim a monopoly on patriotic courage.

 

Congressional Control of Health Care is Dangerous for Children:

Rep. Ron Paul, M. D.

November 10, 2007:

Congress is again grasping for more control over the health of American children with the expansion of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).  Parents who think federally subsidized health care might be a good idea should be careful what they wish for. Rep. Ron Paul's bill, The Parental Consent Act of 2007, is aimed at stopping federal funding of these programs. We don’t need a village, a bureaucrat, or the pharmaceutical industry raising our children.  That’s what parents need to be doing.

 

"The great end of life is not knowledge but action."

~ Thomas Henry Huxley