By Daniel B. Klein
A libertarian economist retracts a swipe at the left—after discovering that our political leanings leave us more biased than we think. [more]
1 day ago
••can ye pass the acid test?•• ye who enter here be afraid, but do what ye must -- to defeat your fear ye must defy it. time bomb tick tock? nervous tic talk? war on war?
By Daniel B. Klein
A libertarian economist retracts a swipe at the left—after discovering that our political leanings leave us more biased than we think. [more]
By Jonathan Chait
You know how the supercommittee failed because the two parties couldn’t compromise on a plan to reduce the deficit? That’s the story all the media is reporting. It’s all wrong. The reason for the deadlock wasn’t that the two parties couldn’t compromise, it’s that they don’t agree on what problem they’re supposed to solve. And once you understand this, then you can see that the supercommittee didn’t actually fail. [more]
probably nothing has done so much harm to the liberal cause as the wooden insistence of some liberals on certain rules of thumb, above all of the principle of laissez-faire capitalism.free market hayek fans generally avoid mention of such inconvenient quotes, but some opponents of national health care will cite "without endangering general freedom" (in the next to last quote above) as a reason to oppose the individual mandate. i tend to agree. the mandate is inconsistent with social justice. supporters of the patient protection and affordable care act would do well to have a backup plan ready to go if and when the supreme court declares that the individual mandate violates the due process clause. even the idea of a public option has it backwards: what we need is a public plan (i.e., single payer) with a private option (so anyone who doesn't want to be in the public plan could choose private coverage, rather than the other way round).
—F A Hayek, The Constitution of Liberty (University Chicago Press, 1960), pp. 502–3
The successful use of competition as the principle of social organization precludes certain types of coercive interference with economic life, but it admits of others which sometimes may very considerably assist its work and even requires certain kinds of government action.
—Hayek, The road to serfdom (University of Chicago Press, 1994)
To prohibit the use of certain poisonous substances, or to require special precautions in their use, to limit working hours or to require certain sanitary arrangements, is fully compatible with the preservation of competition. The only question here is whether in the particular instance the advantages gained are greater than the social costs which they impose.
—Hayek, The road to serfdom (University of Chicago Press, 1994)
Nor can certain harmful effects of deforestation, of some methods of farming, or of the smoke and noise of factories, be confined to the owner of the property in question, or to those who are willing to submit to the damage for an agreed compensation.
—Hayek, The road to serfdom (University of Chicago Press, 1994)
Even the most essential prerequisite of its [the market's] proper functioning, the prevention of fraud and deception (including exploitation of ignorance), provides a great and by no means fully accomplished object of legislative activity.
—Hayek, The road to serfdom (University of Chicago Press, 1994)
There is no reason why, in a society which has reached the general level of wealth ours has, the first kind of security should not be guaranteed to all without endangering general freedom; that is: some minimum of food, shelter and clothing, sufficient to preserve health. Nor is there any reason why the state should not help to organize a comprehensive system of social insurance in providing for those common hazards of life against which few can make adequate provision.
—Hayek, The road to serfdom quoted here
In no system that could be rationally defended would the state just do nothing.
—Hayek, The road to serfdom (University of Chicago Press, 1994)
The oldest president to assume office was Ronald Reagan (age 69 years, 349 days).so he was not quite 78 when he left office.
American Crossroads is a 527 organization that has raised and spent tens of millions of dollars to defend and elect Republican candidates to federal office, and was very active in the 2010 U.S. midterm elections.[1] Its president is Steven J. Law, a former United States Deputy Secretary of Labor for President George W. Bush, and the Chairman of the Board of Directors is former Republican National Committee chairman Mike Duncan. Advisers to the group include Senior Advisor and former White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove and former Counselor to the President and Republican National Committee chairman Ed Gillespie.
...
American Crossroads lists its formal leadership as follows:[2]...
- Mike Duncan, Chairman of the Board
- Steven J. Law, President and CEO
- Jo Ann Davidson, Director
- Jim Dyke, Secretary
- Carl Forti, Political Director
- Karl Rove, Adviser
- Ed Gillespie, Adviser
- Jonathan Collegio, Communications Director
American Crossroads raised $28 million in the 2010 election cycle.[8] 91% of the funds raised were from billionaires.[9][10][11]
...
Crossroads Grassroots Policy Strategies (Crossroads GPS)[12] is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit corporation that works in conjunction with American Crossroads. As a 501(c)(4) nonprofit, Crossroads GPS's primary purpose is the advancement of social welfare including public policy advocacy, although it is permitted to engage in political spending as well. Crossroads GPS is required to report what it spends, but it is not required to publicly disclose any donor information.[13]
... [more]
No. 314 of 365 ways to drive a liberal crazy
Pick a fight with a liberal on:
LIBERAL MEDIA BIAS.
Quote the "great"—and remember to use the air quotes—Walter Cronkite: "I think most newspaper men by definition have to be liberal; if they're not liberal, by my definition of it, they can hardly be good newspapermen."
Population | 1 billion | 2 billion | 3 billion | 4 billion | 5 billion | 6 billion | 7 billion | 8 billion | 9 billion |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | 1804 | 1927 | 1960 | 1974 | 1987 | 1999 | 2011 | 2024 | 2042 |
Years until next billion | 123 | 34 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 18 |
Population | 250 million | 500 million | 1 billion | 2 billion | 4 billion | 8 billion | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | AD 950 | 1600 | 1804 | 1927 | 1974 | 2024 | |||||
Years until next doubling | 650 | 204 | 123 | 47 | 50 | ||||||
Population | 375 million | 750 million | 1.5 billion | 3 billion | 6 billion | ||||||
Year | 1420 | 1720 | 1875 | 1961 | 1999 | ||||||
Years until next doubling | 300 | 155 | 86 | 38 |
You are a Social Justice Crusader, also known as a rights activist. You believe in equality, fairness, and preventing neo-Confederate conservative troglodytes from rolling back fifty years of civil rights gains.
Take the quiz at
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