Editor’s Pick. Written by Patrick Barron. Understanding today’s convoluted domestic and international fiat monetary system frankly requires a great deal of time and study. One must understand fractional reserve banking, and the way this system affects the money supply. One must understand the multi-step process by which banks create money out of thin air. One…
Category: Editor’s Picks
End the Fed?
Editor’s Pick. Written by Christopher Zimny. Directly ending the Federal Reserve System through legislation is the wrong goal, both morally and practically, for those who oppose the Fed. Rather, we should be concerned with abolishing the legal tender laws that largely force us to use Federal Reserve notes. If this is achieved, the Fed will…
The Rules Don’t Apply To The State
Editor’s Pick. Written by Michael Suede. One of the fascinating things about the state is its ability to get away with crimes that normal citizens would be imprisoned or executed for. In a world awash in rules and regulations, I find it fascinating that virtually none of the rules apply to the people who are…
Healthy Partnership Conflict Resolution When you Live With Kids
Editor’s Pick. Written by Laura Markham. The nature of human relationships is that we will disagree. It’s wonderful for children to see their parents model how to work out disagreements. It’s important for them to know that we don’t always agree, but we always love each other. And it’s critical for kids to see us…
Ten Ways To Confuse a Child
Editor’s Pick. Written by Vickie Bergman. If he’s yelling, yell at him: STOP YELLING! IT’S NOT NICE TO YELL. Tell him never to talk to strangers because it’s dangerous, but then tell him he is rude when he won’t say hello back to the cashier at the grocery store. Tell him he should never let…
The Last Gasp of Copyright Dies Within Me
Editor’s Pick. Written by Wendy McElroy. A few weeks ago, my position on intellectual property (IP) shifted. I abandoned the possibility that copyright by contract could function within a libertarian framework. I have argued for decades that IP cannot be derived from natural rights. Most IP advocates claim IP is a product of your labor…
Don’t Be a Warrior
Editor’s Pick. Written by Jacob Lyles. Do not think of yourself as a warrior or imagine that the world is filled with enemies. It is too easy for the young soldier to declare war on the wrong target – it is surprisingly difficult to choose the right ones. Many intelligent and honest people find themselves…
The Golden Age of America is Now
Editor’s Pick. Written by Stephan Kinsella. Too many libertarians, especially of the “sky is falling” crowd (the ones who have been predicting major societal collapse for 40 years), are sure we are in End Times. Some previous age was America’s apex, from which we’ve long been in rapid decline. America has gone from being a…
Why Do People Submit to Governments?
Editor’s Pick. Written by Mark Stoval for his personal blog. One of the most important insights is that all political states, benign or tyrannical, exist on a foundation of popular consent. The state is a coercive, aggressive monopoly managed by a committee of armed parasites. Rothbard’s “gang of thieves writ large”. Governments are populated by…
The Motives of Public Officials
Editor’s Pick. Written by Scott McPherson for FFF.org. It is not uncommon for critics of the free market to allege that for-profit providers of services have an interest, not in solving problems, but rather in prolonging them. Why would the medical industry cure cancer, heart disease, or AIDS, for example, when it would just be…