Now that 87 octane has topped $4.50 across most of the country, more Americans are becoming aware of the economics of energy. Of course, we are still being lied to about the basic, undeniable reason for the price surge — America’s refusal to harvest its own energy. Democrats led by Barack Obama continue to berate [...]
Providing a textbook example of slanted news coverage, the Los Angeles Times wasted no time contradicting yesterday’s good news that the American economy continues to expand. Little wonder. The Times has been on a months-long crusade to convince voters, uh, readers that the economic sky is indeed falling. Good economic news shall not be tolerated! Today’s [...]
Despite the doom and gloom, all-bad-news-all-the-time mainstream media’s attempt to manufacture a recession, the economy continued to grow in the first quarter. “Earlier this year,” admitted the Associated Press, “some economists thought the economy would lurch into reverse during the opening quarter.” Now, to the surprise of no one, “they believe that will likely [...]
North Korea’s chronic food shortages are about to get a lot worse, according to the United Nations. The World Food Program “projects that North Korea’s food shortages will be double last year’s deficit,” reported the Los Angeles Times last Thursday. Massive flooding and worsening relations with neighboring food donors, including South Korea, are to blame, [...]
America is the richest nation on earth. Our economy out produces all others. We enjoy the world’s highest per capita income and most lavish standard of living. Yet, incredibly, our financial well-being is at risk as never before. Profligate government spending and counter-productive government programs have combined to push America toward a financial abyss. The hard [...]
Adhering to their annual pattern, “Trustees for the government’s two biggest benefit programs warned that Social Security and Medicare are facing ‘enormous challenges’ with the threat to Medicare’s solvency far more severe,” as reported by the Associated Press March 25th. “Without change, rising costs will drive government spending to unprecedented levels, consume nearly all projected federal [...]
Just when you think you’ve heard the dumbest idea since the Susan B. Anthony silver dollar, the latest government misadventure raises the bar. The LA Times reported Friday that “California drug officials launched an $11 million barrage of billboards, bus wraps, cable TV ads and a website Thursday aimed at discouraging gay men from using methamphetamine…” [...]
To round out our week-long discussion of limited government, bureaucratic waste and the like, I think a nice dose of egregious examples of public sector boondoggling is in order. So, in no particular order and always adjusted for inflation, here are all too typical instances of your tax dollars at work:
“Under ‘urban renewal’ policies [a favorite in the [...]
American governments collect and spend too much money. Each year, billions of dollars are wasted through fraud, duplicative and/or obsolete programs, and mismanagement. In the 1980s, the Grace Commission calculated that one-third of Federal expenditures should be characterized as waste. If that ratio holds today, the Federal government this year will round-file more than $1 trillion, an outrage of mythic [...]
Every time free-market capitalism is given a chance to operate, the result is hailed as an “economic miracle.” Not to get picky, but there is nothing miraculous about capitalism producing wealth and spreading prosperity. Miracles by definition occur because of the suspension of natural law. Water becomes wine, food multiplies, and the dead are raised because [...]