I checked out Perry’s site the other day, and ran across this post on Wal-Mart. It looks like Wal-Mart is opening its doors again in New Orleans, while Congress is still pointing fingers. It got me thinking: why is it that we see for-profit businesses flocking to the area, while FEMA is still trying to [...]

Sean Lynch has an interesting discussion at Catallarchy in a post called Connecting The Political Circle. He puts quite a few words into discussing the differences, and similarities, between libertarians (aka anarcho-capitalists) and anarchists (aka anarcho-syndicalists) and socialists. It’s occurred to me that the main difference between libertarians or anarcho capitalists and socialists or communists [...]

About two weeks ago, we had quite a spirited debate here about the question of monopolies in a free market system, and specifically the question of whether Microsoft, or any other supposed monopoly was a problem that libertarians and classical liberals needed to concern themselves with. For a recap of those arguments, you should start [...]

Okay, we’ve had an ongoing discussion here at the Liberty Papers about monopolies, markets and Microsoft. The position presented on one side, a position taken by many libertarians and libertarian-conservatives, is that monopolies that are not directly created by government fiat are okay and we shouldn’t see them as bad. They are, in this line [...]

In the course of our exchanges yesterday about markets, monopoly, and morality, Eric made this comment on the impact that scarcity and monopoly power have on individual liberty: Monopolies do impact Life, Liberty and Property. Specifically liberty and property. You argue that you can always choose not to buy from Microsoft. I argue that you [...]

Eric, Brad and I have been having quite a lively exchange (see here and here and here) over the issue of monopolies, the market economy, and morality. While we’ve covered several topics, one that keeps recurring is the question of whether it is appropriate to think in terms of “right” and “wrong” when it comes [...]

I’m reading The Undercover Economist by Tim Harford, as I mentioned over at Eric’s Grumbles yesterday. The interesting thing, and Harford makes a compelling case for it, is that scarcity is the driving factor in all markets. If the cost of a product is high, yet it seems like the cost to produce it is [...]

I got in a nice email debate today, and I’ll post below the email exchange between myself and a friend. Of all my friends, she is one of the two that I truly enjoy debating. She’s a lawyer, and did her undergrad as an in economics & poli sci (I think poli sci) dual major. [...]