Peter's Blog

Free market economists have demonstrated why socialism fails: without true market prices, economic calculation becomes impossible. Some, however, fail to realize that this limitation also applies to other institutions, like nonprofits, that typically don’t face market prices either. The following article was originally published by the Mises Institute. The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect […]

Central planning– be it of regulation, banking, or security– never produces the correct incentives for efficient economic activity. When economic analysis is applied to the latest debacle with TSA, it’s obvious that such a failure of service would never occur in a free market. The following article was originally published by the Mises Institute. The […]

The recent examples of fraud in Minnesota are one of the greatest examples of government ineptitude and waste in recent memory. Billions of taxpayer dollars were sent directly into the hands of criminals. The weakest in society were taken advantage of those with no regard for human dignity and right or wrong. The fraud was […]

Regulation is already pernicious enough in its stifling effect on economic activity and entrepreneurship, but as regulations and bureaucratic control extend throughout the economy, they also cause the proliferation of “fake jobs” and promote lower job satisfaction for workers. The following article was originally published by the Mises Institute. The opinions expressed do not necessarily […]

In today’s interventionist economy, the Fed inflates away the dollar and congress and the presidency spend trillions on a whim. But according to Austrian economist Murray Rothbard, the modern bureaucracy– especially the civil service system– is arguably the greatest threat to American liberty. The following article was originally published by the Mises Institute. The opinions […]

Austrian economists are correct to point out the links between central banking, fiat currency, and the proliferation of bad and unnecessary debt.When society’s money is inflated to serve the interest of the ultimate debtor– the state– bad debt will abound, and the student loan crisis is no different. The following article was originally published by […]

While most of the American government can be characterized by regulatory overgrowth, few areas loom larger in the public imagination than the Tax Code. This reputation is well earned, as the Tax Code seems to become more complicated each time people try to reform it. Hundreds of years of revisions have left American taxpayers in […]

Every election Americans have been desensitized to claims of cutting spending and somehow getting everything they want at the same time. We expect that candidates will say we can have it all. We hypothetically know that cutting spending and government waste are good things, but they always take second priority to whatever urgent situation or […]

President-elect Trump’s proposed “Department of Government Efficiency” continues to both enrage big government leftists and excite conservatives and libertarians. While there is certainly great merit in shrinking the size and scope of the state, it’s worth remembering that government– by its very nature– cannot be “efficient.” The following article was originally published by the Mises […]