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Poverty versus Prosperity

No amount of government spending will ever “eliminate poverty” because poverty is not actually caused by a lack of money; it’s caused by a lack of ambition and productivity. There are some exceptions, of course, but in the vast majority of cases, poverty is a choice. I’m not discounting the often significant obstacles which can …

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In Defense of Anarcho-Reformism

As much as I tend to agree with Voluntaryists on most issues, the one area I have trouble with is their insistence that total abstention from politics is the only moral (and philosophically consistent) position. I believe that one can recognize that government is an unnecessary evil and still work within the system to make …

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Someone, not Santa, is always watching

A paper recently published by a professor in Canada suggests that the popular “Elf on the Shelf” game is conditioning children to accept the surveillance state. The notion of the Elf on the Shelf is that a small elf doll is actually a scout elf who reports nightly to Santa Claus on the activities that …

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“Protectionism” Only Protects Special Interests

Protectionism exists in many facets of the economy and is essentially the use of taxes, regulations, or other means to disincentivize, restrict, or prohibit trade. The idea is simple: I am the only widget maker in town and I get the town council to levy a 50 percent tax on any widgets that are manufactured …

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The Nature of Freedom

There is no political system that can “establish” or “protect” freedom. The reason for this is quite simple: Any “system” necessarily requires taking power and authority from the individual and granting that stolen authority to the collective in some form. If the system did not do this, it would not be a system, but the …

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Healthcare is not a “right”

No one has the “right” to the services, property, or advice of another. Healthcare is not a “right,” but a category of commodities to be bought and sold in a voluntary marketplace. People “need” lots of things including food, water, shelter, and healthcare; but “need” is not a justification for theft. Whenever the government engages …