Friday Morning Ramble, 4 Nov

 

 

“Auckland ratepayers will be the losers here.”
Good and bad news on the Parker fight – Paul Walker, ANTI DISMAL

Oh, FFS!
Gareth Morgan has announced he is starting a new political party – RNZ

“There are a lot of lessons there that New Zealand might have found useful in 2010 and in the aftermath of 2011.”
Disaster recovery is local – Eric Crampton, OFFSETTING BEHAVIOUR

For America, also read New Zealand. “Zoning laws are making homeownership unaffordable. The biggest barriers to reforming land-use regulation are the vested interests preventing such reforms at a local level.”
Zoning Laws are Erasing the American NZ Dream – Jack Salmon, FEE
Common Law Gave You Real Property Ownership – Rosemarie McConnell, FEE

“A change in the age of Superannuation eligibility is inevitable - it's just a matter of when and how. Yet both the Government and Opposition are in denial, hoping to fob off the problem to future generations.”
David v Jacinda: Super changes a poison pill that must be swallowed – STUFF

Inequality warrior Max Rashbrooke asserts that the ‘'”most fundamental omission’ in our report is ‘its failure to deal in any significant way with the long-run consequences of widened inequality.’” But …
Can rising inequality have “incredibly damaging” consequences if it has not risen in important respects? – Bryce Wilkinson, THE SAND PIT

Elsewhere he comments that “The biggest issue I have is The New Zealand Initiative is completely oblivious to the point that even if the big increase in inequality was in the 1980s or 1990s, and hasn’t worsened since then, it still has big implications for the country today”.

“Telcos asked to hand over info to spy agencies without a warrant. PM says: ‘more to fear from Facebook & Google.’” Except they don’t have absolute legal power and men with guns, Prime Minister.
You have more to fear from Facebook and Google than our spy agencies, says John Key – TVNZ

 

 

“The bombshell court ruling which has bogged down Britain's exit from the EU in a legal quagmire has sparked a row over how UK judges are appointed.”
The unelected 'activist' judges who mounted a 'power grab': High Court trio who blocked Brexit are led by one who founded group dedicated to furthering European integration – Richard Spillett, MAIL ONLINE

“The Brexit legal challenge shows just how much the elites loathe us.”
Article 50: down with this legal coup against the masses – Brandan O’Neill, SPIKED
Of course the establishment is freaking out over Brexit. What did you expect? – AGAINST CRONY CAPITALISM
The Brexit judgment - key points and resources – Adam Wagner, RIGHTS INFO

When the Guardian publishes this, a sea change has begun.
Abolish 20 taxes and set 15% flat rate of income tax in UK, says report – GUARDIAN

“A very good article written by a journalist with a leftward political list. (Which he admits from the outset.) He’s tough on Hillary and he is pretty tough on Trump. But he is hardest on the Washington/New York cabal of “journalists” that has been exposed as little more than a den of propagandists in this election.”
This Election Has Disgraced the Entire Profession of Journalism – AGAINST CRONY CAPITALISM
Forget the FBI cache; the Podesta emails show how America is run – Thomas Frank, GUARDIAN
John Podesta's Best Friend At The DOJ Will Be In Charge Of The DOJ's Probe Into Huma Abedin Emails – ZERO HEDGE

“Similarly, journalists who are immersed in a sea of like-minded colleagues and friends, don’t think they are slanting the news. They are not “ideologues”–that’s what their opponents are.”
Blindness to the power of ideas – Harry Binswanger, HBL

“In boosting Trump and funding fringe parties in Europe, Russia has helped construct a new kind of "comintern"—and it's even more effective than the Cold War version.”
Trump, Putin, and the Alt-Right International – THE ATLANTIC
Putin’s libertarians – Mikhail Svetov, NOT PC, 2014

Mind you, it’s John Pilger he’s talking to. On Russia Today. So …
Julian Assange Ends The Suspense: "The Source Of Hacked Emails Is Not Russia" – ZERO HEDGE

“Terrorism, the Skorzeny Syndrome, is flourishing in the modern world, a reminder that Hitler and Nazism are still taking their toll more than three decades after the Third Reich collapsed.”
What We Got Wrong About Nazis And Terrorists – Steve Marriotti, HUFFINGTON POST

And then there's this.
The potential 'economic catastrophe' that no one is talking about – CNBC

 

“The fact that minimum wages cause the least ‘desirable’
people to be priced out of jobs was for “Progressives” of
a century ago a feature of minimum wages and not a bug.”
~ Thomas Leonard from his 2016 book, Illiberal Reformers [hat tip Don Boudreaux]

 

“Your most comical such error is your charge that free trade is elitist.”
Another Open Letter to Peter Thiel – Don Boudreaux, CAFE HAYEK

Did they ever?
Do Central Bankers Know what They're Doing Anymore? – Kevin Dowd, FEE 

"Supply and demand is one of the first things taught in introductory economics textbooks.. Supply and demand is not a breakthrough on the frontiers of knowledge."
Has Economics Failed? – Thomas Sowell, NRO

“Pointing out that the GDP machine isn’t a real machine, and that its levers, pedals, knobs, and buttons are largely imaginary fancies of arrogant imaginations, market-oriented economists invite the scorn of Engineering economists.”
The Economy Isn't an Engineering Project – Donald Boudreaux, FEE

“Featuring lectures by Philipp Bagus, Joseph Salerno, and Murray Rothbard, this three-lecture course gives the student a coherent Austrian economics approach to money and banking, with sound economic theory applied to the origins and development of money, fractional reserve banking, and central banks.”
NEW COURSE: Money & Banking – MISES INSTITUTE
Central Banksters Created Our Problems, Not the Rich – AGAINST CRONY CAPITALISM

“More of that old time Keynesian religion...But what about Japan?”
Japan refutes old Keynesianism – Scott Sumner, ECON LOG

“I want to suggest a question that I'm sure no one at the conference would dare ask, Should there be competition policy in the first place?”
Is no competition policy the best competition policy? – Paul Walker, ANTI DISMAL

 

"The rich…have no particular class interest in the maintenance
of free competition. They are opposed to confiscation and
expropriation of their fortunes, but their vested interests are rather
in favour of measures preventing newcomers from challenging their
position. Those fighting for free enterprise and free competition do
not defend the interests of those rich today. They want a free hand
left to unknown men who will be the entrepreneurs of tomorrow and
whose ingenuity will make the life of coming generations more
agreeable. They want the way left open to further economic
improvements. They are the spokesmen of progress."
- Ludwig von Mises, quoted in David D’Amato’s 'Occupational Licensing and Inequality'

 

“Religious fundamentalists and biblical literalists present any number of arguments that attempt to disprove evolution. Those who listen with an overly sympathetic or religious ear often fail to critically examine these creationist claims, leading to an ill-informed public and, perhaps more troubling, ill-advised public policy. As Aron Ra makes clear in his new book, however, every single argument deployed by creationists in their attacks on evolution is founded on fundamental scientific, religious, and historical falsehoods--all of them.”
Foundational Falsehoods of Creationism – AMAZON

More victims of the global crack down on “undocumented foreigners.”
Adopted at 3 and brought to US, Oregon man to be deported to S. Korea – CBS
National Geographic's 'Afghan girl' arrested in Pakistan – HERALD

 

“The fact is Smith didn’t mention his reference to ‘an invisible hand’ in that way.”
What Adam Smith meant by his use of the metaphoric invisible hand – Gavin Kennedy, ADAM SMITH’S LOST LEGACY

“Self-interest, far from being the enemy of justice, is one of its greatest benefactors, whether or not a given individual is actively interested in aiding the oppressed.”
An Example of Self-Interest vs. Bigotry – GUS VAN HORN

“Friedrich Nietzsche’s proclamation is not an allusion to the death of the religious God. Nietzsche is making a much broader point— he is asserting that in the universe there is no room for an objectively grounded moral order to exist.” But is he right about that?
Nietzsche’s “God is Dead” Proclamation and The Irrational Man – Anoop Verma, THE VERMA POST
How Nietzsche Became the Most Absurdly Bastardized Philosopher in Hollywood – SLATE
Why morality at all? – NOT PC

“When we talk about Objectivism, it is claimed that David Hume’s Is-Ought Dictum disproves Objectivist ethics. There are actually two different interpretations of Hume's Is-Ought Dictum … By citing Objectivism, we can reply to each of those two interpretations. Your life is the fact that gives meaning to value, the ‘is’ that gives meaning to ‘ought.’"
Two Interpretations of Hume’s Is-Ought Dictum, And a Reply to Each – Stuart Hayashi, HAYASHI POST
Is-Ought? Not a Problem – NOT PC

“The idea that a person ought to be selfish is so alien to our culture that when people learn that Ayn Rand upheld a morality of selfishness they are left scratching their heads. What could Rand possibly mean?”
Being Selfish, Being Happy [course] – Tara Smith, CAMPUS.AYN RAND

“His talk was about the importance of freedom of speech in Western culture. The irony.”
The reaction to Dr Yaron Brook’s talk shows that we can’t handle free speech – THE TAB

Always controversial. Frequently profound. Always a teacher. And now retirement beckons …
Leonard Peikoff’s final podcast – LEONARD PEIKOFF

 

 

 

 

Simple supply and demand.
Why is university so expensive? (VIDEO) – AGAINST CRONY CAPITALISM
Inflation-adjusted student aid has exploded over the last thirty years, but probably hasn’t made college more affordable – CATO CENTER FOR EDUCATIONAL FREEDOM

“Higher education degrees no longer hold any value for employers.”
The Devaluation of Higher Education – Carmen Elana Dorobăț, MISES WIRE

“We push these kids through the school system. Then we tell them to scrape together $100,000 for yet another degree that will somehow gain them entry into the workforce. It’s time we stop congratulating ourselves for taking away opportunity from kids. It’s time to let the kids work again.”
Let the Kids Work – Jeffrey Tucker, FEE

“Basic skills such as reading labels, using kitchen utensils, fending for himself, and taking care of others are not being taught to children who desperately need them to make it in society. But as I looked through the list of skills for each age group, I noticed that teaching one’s child social skills was a recurring theme.”
Important Skills Your Child Should Be Learning in School, but Isn't  - Annie Holmquist, FEE

“Playfulness can’t be separated from learning. Children watch and imitate the people around them. The child’s natural desire to build his or her capabilities doesn’t have to be enforced. Instruction happens when the child seeks it.”
How School Crushes the Child's Natural Love of Learning – LAURA GRACE WELDON’S BLOG

Not news.
Teacher's union openly admits that it exists to indoctrinate your children with its ideas – AGAINST CRONY CAPITALISM

 

“To design a map of the world is no easy task. Because maps represent the spherical Earth in 2D form, they cannot help but be distorted, which is why Greenland and Antarctica usually look far more gigantic than they really are, while Africa appears vastly smaller than its true size. The AuthaGraph World Map tries to correct these issues, showing the world closer to how it actually is in all its spherical glory.”
A More Accurate World Map Wins Prestigious Japanese Design Award – MENTAL FLOSS

“Who are you to tell someone they aren’t allowed to express their love for another culture because you arbitrarily hold exclusive claim to it? Who are you to micromanage identity and dictate what types of multiculturalism is tolerable and intolerable?”
Cultural Appropriation Is Love – Taleed Brown, FEE 

“Finally, the Ultimate Albert Einstein Collection is ready with some of the most popular videos explaining his theories, countless interviews, original footage, letters and more…”
The Legacy Of A Genius: The Best Of Albert Einstein Online – WAKELET

“For Popular Mechanics' 110th anniversary, we decided to do something special: We dived into our archives to find the 110 best, handiest, and most helpful tips ever printed in PM. It's more than a century of DIY wisdom…”
Know Your Stuff: The 110 Best DIY Tips Ever – POPULAR MECHANICS

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