Posts
Monday, February 15, 2010
Social Security Private Option | Michael D. Tanner | Cato Institute: Commentary
Social Security Private Option | Michael D. Tanner | Cato Institute: Commentary: "Critics undoubtedly will point to the collapse of the stock market in 2008 and suggest that private investing is just too risky. However, studies show that long-term investment remains remarkably safe. If workers retiring today had been allowed to start privately investing their taxes 40 years ago, they obviously would have less money than those who retired a couple of years ago, but they still would have more than Social Security promises. Remember, someone retiring today would have begun contributing to his or her retirement account 40 years ago, when the Dow was at less than 1000."
Ukraine's Counterrevolution | Doug Bandow | Cato Institute: Commentary
Ukraine's Counterrevolution | Doug Bandow | Cato Institute: Commentary: "Western governments and NGOs did their best to support the so-called Orange Revolution, which propelled Viktor Yushchenko into the Ukrainian presidency.
But Yushchenko's performance in office was widely viewed as a disaster; in Sunday's presidential election, Yushchenko finished in fifth place with a dismal 5.4 percent. One of his former supporters said simply: 'He did not live up to our expectations.'
Yushchenko's failure serves as a stark reminder of the risks when Washington intervenes in foreign politics."
But Yushchenko's performance in office was widely viewed as a disaster; in Sunday's presidential election, Yushchenko finished in fifth place with a dismal 5.4 percent. One of his former supporters said simply: 'He did not live up to our expectations.'
Yushchenko's failure serves as a stark reminder of the risks when Washington intervenes in foreign politics."
The Unforeseen Consequences of Credit Legislation - Jeremiah Dyke - Mises Institute
The Unforeseen Consequences of Credit Legislation - Jeremiah Dyke - Mises Institute: "A hallmark of state failure is its incapacity to predict the market's response to the policies it puts forth. Indeed, on many levels the state is powerless to change the market's ends, instead only serving to redirect its means."
Free Speech for All | John Samples and Ilya Shapiro | Cato Institute: Commentary
Free Speech for All | John Samples and Ilya Shapiro | Cato Institute: Commentary: "Equality of speech is inherently contrary to protecting speech from government restraint, which is ultimately the heart of American conceptions of free speech."
"Under the new ruling, will businesses (and labor unions) dominate talk about candidates and elections? Well, for two decades before McCain-Feingold, both could spend freely on advertising about candidates for federal office. Such spending made up a relatively small part of election-related speech and no one group dominated said the political arena.
Still, yesterday's ruling might lead to more election spending by both corporations and unions. It is important to remember, however, that none of this money will go directly to candidates for office. It will go instead to broadcasting or otherwise communicating speech about candidates and issues. Such increases in spending should be welcome because studies have shown that more spending—more political communication—leads to better-informed voters."
"Under the new ruling, will businesses (and labor unions) dominate talk about candidates and elections? Well, for two decades before McCain-Feingold, both could spend freely on advertising about candidates for federal office. Such spending made up a relatively small part of election-related speech and no one group dominated said the political arena.
Still, yesterday's ruling might lead to more election spending by both corporations and unions. It is important to remember, however, that none of this money will go directly to candidates for office. It will go instead to broadcasting or otherwise communicating speech about candidates and issues. Such increases in spending should be welcome because studies have shown that more spending—more political communication—leads to better-informed voters."
Friday, February 12, 2010
Haiti's Real Crisis Is Poverty | Ian Vásquez | Cato Institute: Commentary
Haiti's Real Crisis Is Poverty | Ian Vásquez | Cato Institute: Commentary: "Despite receiving more than $8.4 billion in foreign aid since 1980, Haiti is poorer today than it was 30 years ago."
"The average annual number of victims per 100,000 population per rich country was 36; for the poor countries it was 2,879 even though rich countries experience the same amount of disasters"
"[Haiti] ranks in the bottom half of nations listed in the Fraser Institute's economic freedom index, and its rating has barely improved since 1980. The sustained lack of freedom goes a long way in explaining the precarious nature of Haitian's lives."
"Property rights are neither recognized nor protected by the state for the vast majority of Haitians. Bureaucratic regulations are stifling. According the World Bank, it takes 195 days and costs 228 percent of average income in legal and administrative fees just to legally start a business."
"Aid has helped keep Haiti poor. It has sustained poor government policies. It has led to debt, not development. The World Bank's qualification of Haiti as a country so highly indebted that it required debt forgiveness, is an implicit admission of aid's failure: all of Haiti's long-term debt was due to aid and government backed development schemes."
"The average annual number of victims per 100,000 population per rich country was 36; for the poor countries it was 2,879 even though rich countries experience the same amount of disasters"
"[Haiti] ranks in the bottom half of nations listed in the Fraser Institute's economic freedom index, and its rating has barely improved since 1980. The sustained lack of freedom goes a long way in explaining the precarious nature of Haitian's lives."
"Property rights are neither recognized nor protected by the state for the vast majority of Haitians. Bureaucratic regulations are stifling. According the World Bank, it takes 195 days and costs 228 percent of average income in legal and administrative fees just to legally start a business."
"Aid has helped keep Haiti poor. It has sustained poor government policies. It has led to debt, not development. The World Bank's qualification of Haiti as a country so highly indebted that it required debt forgiveness, is an implicit admission of aid's failure: all of Haiti's long-term debt was due to aid and government backed development schemes."
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Obama's Other Massachusetts Problem | Aaron Yelowitz and Michael F. Cannon | Cato Institute: Commentary
Obama's Other Massachusetts Problem | Aaron Yelowitz and Michael F. Cannon | Cato Institute: Commentary: "President Obama has avoided any comparisons between his plan and the Massachusetts law, with good reason. Premiums for employer-sponsored insurance - 96 percent of the Massachusetts' market - are rising 21 percent to 46 percent faster than the national average. State officials have whitewashed the cost overruns, but they are simultaneously raising taxes and threatening to impose a Canadian-style payment system, in which doctors and hospitals do the dirty work of rationing care."
"At best, the law covered 297,000 previously uninsured residents, and the uninsured rate is 3.8 percent rather than 432,000 and 2.6 percent, as Massachusetts claims."
"Private coverage fell by 14.6 percentage points among low-income children - despite no discernable increase in total coverage - and by 6.2 points among low-income adults."
"The law's new 'individual mandate' forces those young adults to accept that bad deal or pay a penalty. As a result, the number of young adults relocating to Massachusetts has fallen by 60 percent."
"At best, the law covered 297,000 previously uninsured residents, and the uninsured rate is 3.8 percent rather than 432,000 and 2.6 percent, as Massachusetts claims."
"Private coverage fell by 14.6 percentage points among low-income children - despite no discernable increase in total coverage - and by 6.2 points among low-income adults."
"The law's new 'individual mandate' forces those young adults to accept that bad deal or pay a penalty. As a result, the number of young adults relocating to Massachusetts has fallen by 60 percent."
Joseph's list of materials to make a parrot
Joseph (almost age 5) came up with the following list of materials that he wants to use to make a parrot:
- Nails
- Hammer (spider man for 5 year old)
- Propellers
- Wood
- Helicopter spinner at top
- Money
- Wrench
- Socket set
- Pilot stuff
- Flying helmet with spider man or batman or robin
- Chairs
- Paint
Forced Unionization - John Stossel
Forced Unionization - John Stossel: "Michelle Berry runs a day-care business out of her home in Flint, MI. She thought that she owned her own business, but Berry's been told she is now a government employee and union member. It's not voluntary. Suddenly, Berry and 40,000 other Michigan private day-care providers have learned that union dues are being taken out of the child-care subsidies the state sends them. The 'union' is a creation of AFSCME, the government workers union, and the United Auto Workers."
Deaf to Deficit Warnings | Richard W. Rahn | Cato Institute: Commentary
Deaf to Deficit Warnings | Richard W. Rahn | Cato Institute: Commentary: "Private forecasters already are estimating that the ratio of government debt to gross domestic product (GDP) will be greater than 100 percent of GDP before the end of this decade (up from just 37 percent three years ago). If the health care reform bill and the energy (cap-and-trade) bill are passed, the situation will be much worse."
"This past week, the White House claimed that the stimulus bill 'saved 2 million jobs,' but just before the stimulus bill was passed, the administration said the unemployment rate would peak at 8 percent with the stimulus bill and 9 percent without it. Now, we have both the stimulus bill and an unemployment rate of more than 10 percent, which shows that the White House is developmentally challenged when it comes to basic arithmetic."
"The only way government can create more jobs is by having workers who produce more and at a lower cost than the private sector. "
"This past week, the White House claimed that the stimulus bill 'saved 2 million jobs,' but just before the stimulus bill was passed, the administration said the unemployment rate would peak at 8 percent with the stimulus bill and 9 percent without it. Now, we have both the stimulus bill and an unemployment rate of more than 10 percent, which shows that the White House is developmentally challenged when it comes to basic arithmetic."
"The only way government can create more jobs is by having workers who produce more and at a lower cost than the private sector. "
An even bigger Climategate scandal? | Cranach: The Blog of Veith
An even bigger Climategate scandal? | Cranach: The Blog of Veith: "But probably the most damaging report has come from Joseph D’Aleo, the first Director of Meteorology and co-founder of the Weather Channel, and Anthony Watts, a meteorologist and founder of SurfaceStations.org.
In a January 29 report, they find that starting in 1990, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) began systematically eliminating climate measuring stations in cooler locations around the world. Yes, that’s right. They began eliminating stations that tended to record cooler temperatures and drove up the average measured temperature. The eliminated stations had been in higher latitudes and altitudes, inland areas away from the sea, as well as more rural locations. The drop in the number of weather stations was dramatic, declining from more than 6,000 stations to fewer than 1,500."
In a January 29 report, they find that starting in 1990, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) began systematically eliminating climate measuring stations in cooler locations around the world. Yes, that’s right. They began eliminating stations that tended to record cooler temperatures and drove up the average measured temperature. The eliminated stations had been in higher latitudes and altitudes, inland areas away from the sea, as well as more rural locations. The drop in the number of weather stations was dramatic, declining from more than 6,000 stations to fewer than 1,500."
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