Audio Mises Wire

In his 2006 book The Wages of Destruction, Columbia University historian Adam Tooze explains Hitler’s policy of seeking lebensraum (living room). However, Ludwig von Mises (whom Tooze ignores) already explained that policy in his 1944 Omnipotent Government. Original Article: The Quest for Lebensraum  

Alex Pertsev, a developer of Tornado Cash, has been sentenced to prison by a Dutch court for helping build a platform that guarantees financial privacy. If there is one thing the state cannot tolerate, it is someone making financial transactions without government agents watching. Original Article: Governments Hate Privacy Software  

Like bad money driving out good money, government intervention can also create Gresham’s law conditions for entrepreneurs. Using the political process, bad entrepreneurs can get government to regulate entrepreneurial competition out of business. Original Article: How Bad Economic Policies Drive Out Good Entrepreneurs  

As the war in Ukraine drags on in its third year, Ukraine is bleeding and the future is even more gloomy. Unfortunately, even though it is time to end this conflict, the Biden administration continues to demand this war be fought to the last living Ukrainian. Original Article: There Are Only Downsides to Prolonging the War in Ukraine  

Socialists pride themselves on their supposed good intentions even as they fashion policies that create havoc and harm the people socialists claim to be helping. Ludwig von Mises called it destructionism. Original Article: The Socialist Road to Destruction amid So-Called Good Intentions  

The endless bubble economy has a new lending craze: loans backed by AI chips. The problem is that while the chips serve as collateral, companies right now cannot make enough revenue to cover their costs. Original Article: The Unsustainable AI-Driven Lending Boom  

In order to vastly expand the regulatory state, the Biden administration is using fake cost-benefit ratios to make its regulations seem less costly and more beneficial. This is clearly fraudulent, but no bureaucrat will be charged with any crimes. Original Article: The Biden Administration Uses Fudged Numbers to Justify Imposing Punitive Regulations  

In the aftermath of Donald Trump's conviction in Manhattan—a political show trial, to be sure—David Gordon reviews Danilo Zolo’s, Victor’s Justice, which examined the Nuremberg Trials following World War II. Original Article: The Menace of Political Show Trials  

Long before government mandates and pressure infected businesses and universities with the DEI virus, Ludwig von Mises explained how bureaucracies infect the decision-making process.  Original Article: From Profits to Pandering: How Government Turned Universities and Businesses into DEI Bureaucracies  

While our political “leaders” insist that the government is “protecting” us, it offers the same kind of “protection” that mobsters offer: pay us to “protect” you, or we burn down your place with you in it. Original Article: Do You Know Who’s Hitting You?  

Ordinary people cannot stop the Fed and the government from inflating the currency, but they can take measures to shield themselves from some of its harmful effects. Mark Thornton presents a few ideas on how it can be done. Original Article: How People Can Better Fight Inflation  

The case against Donald Trump was utterly ridiculous. Yet he was convicted anyway. Opponents of the political establishment need to understand why.  Original Article: The Lesson of the Trump Conviction  

The Tennessee Board of Regents for higher education is finding that their DEI efforts are not successful, and the Tennessee legislature has become skeptical. It might be better to scrap the DEI collectivist “solutions” altogether. Original Article: Unsuccessful DEI Efforts Meet Legislative Opposition in Tennessee  

Robert Reich is an economic fallacy machine, and he has begun a ten-week series in which he claims to debunk economic myths. Of course, to do so, he has to create economic myths and present them as factual. Original Article: Debunking Robert Reich’s Debunking  

What makes a libertarian society libertarian? Certainly, one must begin—as did Murray Rothbard—not only with the nonaggression principle, but also with the unequivocal protection of private property rights. Original Article: Distinguishing Libertarian Philosophy from Political Strategy  

One of the problems in presenting economic concepts to a public audience is that too many people in the academic world do not comprehend the simple presence of opportunity cost.  Original Article: Scott Galloway’s TED Talk Reveals a Basic Ignorance of Economics  

Keynesian economists believe that the key to increasing economic growth is increasing the supply of money in circulation. Money, however, is a means of exchange, not a means of payments. The difference is vital to understanding economics. Original Article: Does Increasing the Money Supply also Increase Economic Growth?  

Asset forfeiture is another term for state-sponsored theft. Reform of this pernicious policy is almost impossible because of the incentives set up by governments at all levels. Original Article: No Honor Among Government Thieves: The Evil of Asset Forfeiture  

Political and academic elites claim that economic freedom is the antithesis of civilization. They claim that functioning civilization can come only from a welfare state, a nonsensical proposition Original Article: Civilization Depends upon Economic Freedom  

David Gordon reviews How to Run Wars, by Christopher J. Coyne and Abigail R. Hall. Their tone is satirical, aimed at showing the folly and corruption that marks the policies of the foreign policy elites. Original Article: Coyning US into War  

Even though our legal authorities treat smugglers as criminals, smugglers actually are promoters of liberty who usually break unjust laws. The US was practically founded on smuggling. Original Article: Smugglers: True Heroes of Liberty  

Switzerland has been a neutral country for about five hundred years. Sweden also has a tradition of neutrality, but it has recently changed its position, to its own detriment. Original Article: Switzerland Still Cherishes its Traditional Neutrality  

The US government’s recent arms sale to Israel is a reminder that arms sales have become a significant part of US foreign policy, as well as a major source of instability around the world. Original Article: US Arms Sales Are a Clear and Present Danger  

According to an article in The Atlantic, Washington is turning away from its previous commitment to “free trade.” However, there never was a “free trade consensus” because Washington always has sought state-managed trade. Original Article: Don’t Call It Free Trade  

Central banks intervene in order to “create demand,” and then they intervene in order to try to mitigate the damage they caused earlier. This is a never-ending scenario of economic destruction. Original Article: Central Banks Are Destroying Our Economies