Congress Rediscovers the Constitution | Roger Pilon | Cato Institute: Commentary

Congress Rediscovers the Constitution | Roger Pilon | Cato Institute: Commentary: "Congress must acknowledge honestly that it has not kept faith with the limits the Constitution imposes. It should then stop delegating its legislative powers to executive agencies. Congress should either vote on the sea of regulations the executive branch is promulgating or, far better, rescind or defund those regulations, policies and programs that never should have been promulgated in the first place"

Can We Stop Calling Them "Consumer Protections" Now? | Michael F. Cannon | Cato Institute: Commentary

Can We Stop Calling Them "Consumer Protections" Now? | Michael F. Cannon | Cato Institute: Commentary: "At the same time Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius was threatening to bankrupt insurers who claim ObamaCare is increasing premiums by more than 1 percent, her own employees estimated that one of the law's regulations — the requirement to purchase unlimited annual coverage — will increase some people's premiums by 7 percent or more when fully implemented."

"The ban on discriminating against children with pre-existing conditions has caused insurers to stop selling child-only policies in dozens of states. The dependent-coverage mandate was cited as one of the reasons spurring a Service Employees International Union local in New York City to eliminate coverage for 6,000 dependent children.

In 2008, Congress passed a similar mandate that supporters said would expand coverage for mental-health and substance-abuse services. Instead, that mandate spurred the Screen Actors Guild to eliminate mental-health coverage for 12,000 of its lower-paid members. It had the same effect on 3,500 members of the Chicago's Plumbers Welfare Fund, and 2,200 employees of Woodman's Food Market in Wisconsin. Other employers are curtailing access to mental-health services thanks to this mandate, and some insurers have stopped selling such coverage altogether."

"This supposed consumer protection also punishes efforts to reduce fraud and improve quality by reviewing claims. Thus, in addition to increasing premiums, it may expose patients to unnecessary and even harmful services."

"Sebelius has so far issued 222 waivers, which raises the question: if these were really consumer protections, why waive them?"

"rules that were supposed to protect children have stripped sick kids of their health insurance and made it harder for parents to find coverage for kids who may soon fall ill. Other rules have reduced wages and discouraged hiring amid high unemployment."

Welcome to the President's Private Prison | Nat Hentoff | Cato Institute: Commentary

Welcome to the President's Private Prison | Nat Hentoff | Cato Institute: Commentary: "'indefinite detention as a long-term Obama administration policy makes clear that the White House ALONE (emphasis added) will manage a review process for those it chooses to hold without charge of trial."

"To deprive someone of their liberty for what could very well be their entire lifetime without charging them with any crime and without having the evidence necessary to convict them in a regular court strikes at the heart of our core constitutional values."

Time to Play Dr. No | Michael F. Cannon | Cato Institute: Commentary

Time to Play Dr. No | Michael F. Cannon | Cato Institute: Commentary: "A former New York City fraud investigator has estimated that fraud and abuse account for as much as 40% of Medicaid spending in New York — an amount that dwarfs all future budget gaps combined.

ObamaCare makes this unmanageable program even worse. The health-care bill's Medicaid mandate forces states to expand eligibility, to enroll more people who were already eligible, and gives states less flexibility to eliminate abuse."

"Medicaid's 'matching grants' mean that when states eliminate waste, fraud and abuse, they only get to keep (at most) half the savings. So they don't try even half as hard as they should."

A Brighter Look at Milgram's Obedience Study - Michael Kitchens - Mises Daily

A Brighter Look at Milgram's Obedience Study - Michael Kitchens - Mises Daily: "Thus, only in the direct presence of the authority figure do you find that most people will obey malevolent orders. Overall, what we find is that authority is a relatively weak way to establish and maintain social order."

Campaign For Liberty — Votes For Sale

Campaign For Liberty — Votes For Sale: "I say if liberals and moderates want to raise the debt ceiling the fiscal conservatives should hold out and one at time agree to vote for it in return for $250 million in spending cuts being passed. This means that if they need 40 votes they need to pass $10 Billion in spending cuts to get their bill passed."

Campaign For Liberty — Voter ID

Campaign For Liberty — Voter ID: "Surely the danger posed to society from vote tampering is far greater than that posed by an underage puff on a Camel. Acts of voter fraud are certain to occur in each election cycle, while acts of terrorism are ridiculously improbable; and yet the government makes me show it a state-issued photo ID, a travel voucher, and my unit before I can fly on plane that does not belong to them."

Governor says Wisconsin ‘Open For Business’ | New Richmond News | New Richmond, Wisconsin

Governor says Wisconsin ‘Open For Business’ | New Richmond News | New Richmond, Wisconsin: "The [“Welcome to Wisconsin”] sign generally shows the name of the current governor. Walker’s “Open For Business” sign will be posted instead of a sign with his name."

Campaign For Liberty — A More Perfect Union

Campaign For Liberty — A More Perfect Union: "The problem with compulsory unionization is simple enough: it is incompatible with a commitment to equal rights. Each of us has the right to form a union and bargain collectively; and each of us has the equal right to work union-free. The Constitution does not select one over the other."

"If the union adds value, as it claims, employees will see this first hand and readily join. If union labor is superior, as it claims, employers will gladly choose to employ more of it. If unionism were in everyone's best interest, as it claims, then everyone will choose it enthusiastically.

In fact, if unions would guarantee the quality, safety, and availability of their workforce, employers would have a powerful incentive to choose union labor exclusively. The more perfect union is the one which individuals are free to choose, not forced to join. If liberty offends, then let the unionists be offended."

Burns Diary Exposes the Myth of Fed Independence - Doug French - Mises Daily

Burns Diary Exposes the Myth of Fed Independence - Doug French - Mises Daily: "a Fed chairman has to do what the president demands or 'the central bank would lose its independence.'"

"The Fed chair [Burns] writes more than once that he did not favor closing the gold window, but that ultimately it had to be closed because the government was incapable of action and leadership. But, of course, Burns and company were implementing Nixon's New Economic Policy, which involved plenty of heavy-handed government action: a wage-and-price freeze, a 10 percent surcharge on imports, an investment tax credit of 10 percent, and a 'temporary' closing of the gold window that became very permanent.

Burns wrote that he 'assured the President that I would support his new program fully,' notwithstanding his reservations about the gold suspension."