Art and Culture

When Flying Is Freedom

“The freedom private pilots enjoy, pointing their aircraft in any direction the birds fly, is a testament to the potential for other markets to also operate in a similar manner, without overbearing regulatory apparatuses.” ~ Craig J. Richardson

A Tragedy in Waiting

“Taking away someone’s means of self-defense, making her vulnerable to criminal attacks, is a violation of that person’s rights. Waiting periods for gun purchases do precisely that.” ~ Jason Sorens

The Global Market Miracle of the 99-cent Pineapple

“When past centuries’ most-iconic luxuries become commonplace and affordable, we always have specialization and market innovations to thank.” ~ Laura Williams

There is Cosmic Wisdom in this Simple Question

“Despite too many flaws to count, my dad had a strong sense of dignity and fundamental equality. He greeted those who overstepped with a simple question that is woefully under-appreciated today: Who do you think you are?” ~ Max Borders

The Screen of Gyges

“Lousy information will continue contaminating the noosphere until we figure out how to incentivize truth-tracking. So it’s not just that we must set up systems that better track the truth (innovation). We must set ourselves up to better track the truth (wisdom).” ~ Max Borders

Is It An Economic Crime To Import a Soccer Jersey?

“One of the hardiest and most enduring fallacies in economics is the mercantilist fallacy: buying from foreigners is bad for us because we should ‘keep the money here;’ selling to foreigners is good for us because we can pile up more money.” ~ Art Carden

1619, Anyone?

“Phil will next take up the 1619 Project at the Soho Forum on April 20, addressing the resolution: The New York Times book The 1619 Project, and the Hulu video series based on it, are important contributions to our understanding of slavery and the role of African Americans in American history.” ~ James R. Harrigan

The University of Washington Tries to Squelch Dissident Professor, Gets Sued

“If university administrators can just pass the cost of lawsuits along to the taxpayers, they will never respect the constitutional rights of faculty who dissent from their ideology.” ~ George Leef

Will 2024 Be the Ultimate Expressive Voting Election?

“Campaigning almost solely for expressive votes in a vastly divided country threatens to put a prudent government out of the question, and as Jeremy Collier wrote, ‘Prudence is the necessary ingredient in all the virtues, without which they degenerate into folly and excess.'” ~ Gary M. Galles

Will AI Eat Our Lunch or Make It?

“Chefs, servers, and hosts often have a wide set of skills that cannot be easily replicated by AI technologies, which suggests fears of AI’s unemployment effects are overblown.” ~ Byron Carson & Katie Pitcher

The Essential Natural Law

A Review of Wynton Marsalis’s Moving to Higher Ground

“It is the individual speaking her innermost feelings. In the words of the famous jazz composition by Norman Mapp, ‘jazz ain’t nothing but soul,’ and in our world now, we need that individual voice and soul more than ever.” ~ Daniel Asia