Tag Archive for ‘Economics’

The Panic of 2011

If you’re old or sick and have a lot of money, I suggest taking a trip out of the country, away from your heirs, until January 1, 2011. And don’t tell them where you’re going. On that date, the death tax for rich folks goes from the current 0 percent to 55 percent. So your heirs will get less than half of what they would have if you went to the Great Walmart in the Sky a day earlier.

Is Thomas Woods a Dissenter? A Further Reply, Pt. 4

Next let us turn to Woods’ comments on my discussion of scarcity as an economic concept. I again quoted Paul Samuelson who introduces the topic as fundamental to economic analysis and concludes by saying: “If you add up all the wants, you quickly find that there are simply not enough goods and services to satisfy even a small fraction of everyone’s consumption desires.”

Is Thomas Woods a Dissenter? A Further Reply, Pt. 3

Next we must look at another rhetorical device of Woods which serves to distract the attention of the reader from the point at issue and to prejudice him against what I actually wrote. Woods mentions the interventions of bishops’ conferences into economic matters. As a matter of fact I said absolutely nothing in my article about bishops nor do I want to go into the complicated question of their competence in the matter, except to say that it clearly is not the same as that of the popes.

Is Thomas Woods a Dissenter? A Further Reply, Pt. 2

Dr. Woods’ article, “Catholic Social Teaching and the Market Economy Revisited: A Reply to Thomas Storck,” is, I must admit, superficially attractive. It appears to crush opposition under a weight of impressive learning. But, I would suggest, when his assertions are examined, Woods’ citation of authorities, like his argument in general, fails.

Is Thomas Woods A Dissenter? A Further Reply, Pt. 1

Almost five years ago I wrote for ChroniclesMagazine.org a piece attacking Thomas Woods’ views on the relationship between Catholic social teaching and the science of economics. In brief, my complaint was against Woods’ contention that certain teachings of the popes on social matters overstep the boundaries of legitimate Church teaching because they contradict the findings of economics, as Woods conceives them to be.

Illiteracy in High Places

If a person lives long enough, he can watch everyone forget everything they learned.

Everyone includes Federal Reserve chairmen, economists, Bank of America “strategists” and even Bloomberg.com.

Bailing Out the Bucket Shops

Both the Bush and Obama administrations decided they would not let the bankrupt go bankrupt. Natural forces, if allowed to work, would quickly put the weak to sleep, leaving stronger firms to pick up the business. The problem with the decision to intervene is that, once made, there is no reasonable way of stopping.

Dead Romans and Live Americans

“Libero Ingresso” says the little sign on the doors of an Italian shop. English speakers who know enough Italian to translate the words, Free Entrance, sometimes wonder if there was a time when Italian shopkeepers charged customers an admission fee, to be refunded, perhaps, if a purchase was made. It is just the sort of thing you might expect of Old Europe.

Defining Terms

Libertarians and capitalists write as if there were some natural or divine force known as “the market.” There is no such thing. There is no MARKET, only markets, and a market is a place where people exchange goods and services, sometimes but not always for money.

The No-Think Nation

“The prospects of a government rescue for the foundering American automakers dwindled Thursday as Democratic congressional leaders conceded that they would face potentially insurmountable Republican opposition,” reported the New York Times last Friday.

Wow! The entire country is steamed up over the Republicans bailing out a bunch of financial crooks who have paid themselves fortunes in bonuses for destroying America’s pensions. Why do Democrats want to protect Republicans from further ignominy by not giving them the opportunity to vote down a bailout for workers? Quick, someone enroll the Democratic Party in Politics 101.