Audio Mises Wire

One of the fallacies pushed by monetary economists is that a growing economy needs a growing supply of money in order to prevent deflation, which they claim is as harmful as inflation. However, as Austrians point out, there is no “optimum” amount of money in the economy, since prices adjust. Original article: Should Central Banks Accommodate Increases in Demand for Money?   

The child-like obsession with buying stuff that American society is often criticized for around Christmas is a sought-after result of our government’s monetary policy. Original article: America’s Problem with Consumerism Is the Government’s Fault  

The Cultural Revolution continues apace in this country and it is aimed at all of the old Confederate symbols from statues to the Confederate Battle Flag. With leftist progressives there can be no discussion. Any symbol from the South equates to racism and nothing else. Original article: Marxism and the Cultural Revolution   

The Austrian school recognizes that economic analysis is timeless and the ancient story of “The Poor Man of Nippur” provides an excellent example. From time preference to the structure of production, many of the lessons are contained in this story. Original article: The Poor Man of Nippur and Austrian Economic Principles   

President-elect Donald Trump has declared that he will raise tariffs his first day in office. Our economy, however, does not need government-created roadblocks to trade. Instead, we need free exchange and sound money. Original article: We Desperately Need Sound Money, Not Tariffs   

Fifty years ago today, December 11, 1974, F.A. Hayek gave his Nobel Lecture in Sweden. The conflict between what the public expects science to achieve in satisfaction of popular hopes, and what is really in its power, is a serious matter. Original article: The Pretense of Knowledge   

Higher education has managed to con huge numbers of young people to take out six-figure loans in order to have the “college experience.” However, the so-called benefits to college are turning out to be a chimera, all funded by increasing indebtedness. Original article: How the Nanny Campus Will Fight to Keep Taxpayers Hostage   

As we see from Jamaica‘s experience, attempts by the government to be entrepreneurial misallocate resources, waste money, and achieve poor results. Original article: Jamaica and the Failure of the Entrepreneurial State   

Mainstream economists today examine economic phenomena from a “black box” perspective in which they look at inputs and outputs without trying to understand causal mechanisms that make the outcomes possible. Original article: A Critique of Black Box Economics   

Can an increase in the supply of gold cause a boom-bust cycle? Mises believed it was theoretically possible but highly unlikely. Rothbard, on the other hand, said as long as gold is money and there is no fiduciary media, such a scenario was not possible. Original article: Could an Increase in the Supply of Gold Cause a Boom-Bust Cycle?   

We have reached this point: the government keepers of money do not even understand what money is or why inflation is harmful. To them, the real threat to the economy is “deflation.”Original article: Finding Shelter from Monetary Racketeers   

Thanks to unrelenting propaganda from the establishment media, a large number of Americans are suffering from what is diagnosed as “climate anxiety.” Original article: Climate Anxiety: A Regime-Created “Illness”   

Commercial real estate in the US faces major problems despite efforts by the Federal Reserve System to prop it up. Bonds used to finance commercial real estate markets are being hit especially hard, and there is no relief in sight. Original article: Distress in Commercial Real Estate Bonds Hits All-Time High   

By misusing statistics, the government claims that racial disparities are always caused by racial discrimination and that these disparities can only be rectified by state-directed outcomes. However, government programs have made things much worse. Original article: Disparate Impact Is a Legal Trick   

Rent control always results in housing shortages and deteriorating housing stock. Governments and activists, unfortunately, never learn any lessons. Original article: The Economic and Social Consequences of Rent Control   

Never forget the Christmas truce of World War I, when troops refused to be pawns of empire for one blessed day. Original article: The Christmas Truce of World War I   

Modern academic economics is based upon the methodologies used to study the natural sciences. However, such methodologies are inappropriate to study economics, which must be based upon causal-realism. Original article: The Relevance of the Natural Sciences Methods in Economics   

With the demise of the Biden administration, it is time to take a hard look at the DEI programs it imposed. While divisive, simple removal will not solve underlying problems. Original article: Post-Election Prospects for Ending DEI   

 Original article: The American Addiction to Transfer Payments   

Economist Bryan Caplan has held up the United Arab Emirates as an example of how open borders can be successful. Caplan clearly does not understand how immigration works in the UAE.Original article: Caplan’s Errors on the UAE and Open Borders   

As Joseph Schumpeter noted, markets need “creative destruction” to survive and advance. However, Europe‘s Digital Market Act (DMA)—while written to ostensibly protect competition—gives the digital economy uncreative destruction. Original article: Destroying Creative Destruction: The DMA against Innovation   

Critics of free markets claim that the 1980s and 90s were near-pure laissez-faire when, in reality, the regulatory state only got stronger. Original article: “NAFTA Fever” and the Myth of Government-Created Free Markets   

The great free-market classical liberal William Leggett believed that Americans do not need politicians telling us on which days Americans ought to be thankful. Original article: Thanksgiving Day   

Murray Rothbard wrote that egalitarianism is a “revolt against nature.” Progressives claim that inequality harms society and is morally unacceptable, but in reality, it is necessary for division of labor, which enables social cooperation. Original article: Wealth and Income Inequality Are Essential for Social Cooperation   

The original Mont Pelerin Society meeting in 1947 featured Ludwig von Mises, whose warnings about the dangers of socialism and totalitarianism had gone unheeded. In the wreckage of World War II, the truth of his message should have been obvious. It wasn't. Original article: The Battle on Lake Geneva—Mises vs. the Statists at Mont Pelerin