Before making a big deal of someone else’s actions, it’s a good idea to look in the mirror. You might be surprised by what you see.
Tag: government
Instant or Nothing?
I really don’t understand those willing to act as though these acts of statism are “legitimate” just because they aren’t going away today. Cancer won’t be cured today, either, but that’s no reason to pretend it’s good or necessary.
From “Come and Take It” to “Go and Make It”
What if we stopped attacking people for a cause and started attracting people to a cause? What if we became creators instead of mere critics and conquerors? Rather than waging war—either figuratively (in arguing) or literally — what if we channeled all of our passion and energy into disruptive acts of creation?
Political Action Exacerbates the Problem of Hate
Politics is your neighbor and his like-minded friends rallying together to lobby for government to shift their policies in their favor. If your neighbor and his friends hate intrusive government, those policy shifts may be a good thing for those who value peace and prosperity. But if your neighbor and his friends hate people wealthier than them, or people with a different skin color, those policy shifts are sure to bring about an exacerbated level of conflict, and thus a reduction in prosperity.
Those Who Think Nothing of Voting Us into Compliance
It seems the government’s monopoly on education has finally eroded enough common sense over the decades that many can seriously argue that to pin blame on two sides is somehow excusing one, as if blame is somehow a rivalrous, consumable good.
The State Thrives on Ignorance
The state needs the general public to be ignorant, but it doesn’t simply stand aside hoping that people left to their own devices will end up that way.
Tribalism and Economic Nationalism – Cut from the Same Cloth
Why would anyone underestimate the benefits of interacting with foreigners? It might be because they are, well, foreign. Combine this bias with an ignorance of Adam Smith’s “invisible hand” (spontaneous order) and a suspicion that exchange is zero-sum rather than positive-sum, and you have the making of an economic nationalist.
Cognitive Dissonance
Today I saw a pickup truck that had a front plate that messaged “Don’t Tread on Me!” Then, when he passed I noticed the driver had an American flag decal on his back window. I wondered just who he thought was treading on him, if not the government that has usurped that flag as its avatar.
Economics Helps You Deal with Difficult People
You wake up to the realization that you have an important meeting in 30 minutes. You leap out of bed, throw some clothes on, grab your keys, and rush out the door. You’re halfway to your car when you see it.
It’s not a moment of zen, but of economics.
Somebody has slashed your tires.
Repercussions as a Matter of Course
Government can hardly ever do just one thing. Its action has repercussions, and these repercussions have repercussions, and so forth. Even when the government’s initial action may seem compassionate or productive, it is highly unlike that the repercussions will prove likewise.