Whenever libertarians talk about the evils of liberty-restricting paternalism, I can’t help but recall that the endorsement of paternalism is the only plausible way their theory of laissez-faire property is supposed to get off the ground in the first place. As Nozick notes, the appropriation of property is inherently liberty-destroying: It will be implausible to… Continue reading A Note On Libertarian Anti-Paternalism
Short Note on Norway’s Oil and Sovereign Wealth Fund
In my meanderings on the internet, I’ve run across some misconceptions about Norway’s oil and Sovereign Wealth Fund that I think are harmful to understanding Norway’s welfare success. So here are some things worth noting: Norway does not use its oil revenues to fund its state. Norway’s oil is under the control of the state-run… Continue reading Short Note on Norway’s Oil and Sovereign Wealth Fund
Cop Unions
Recently, much attention has been paid to cops behaving the way cops often behave: killing blacks, harassing blacks, abusing blacks, and so on. One line of commentary on this newfound interest in long-standing cop abuse is that this abuse is the fault of (or cannot be stopped because of) police unions. While I have no… Continue reading Cop Unions
If Clueless People Shouldn’t Vote, Then Should Damon Linker?
Damon Linker has a piece at The Week arguing against compulsory voting. If you’ve ever read a college newspaper, there is no reason to read Linker’s take on the matter because you’ve already seen it before. Nonetheless, I found this bit pretty funny in light of Linker’s own failings: We all know that some people are more… Continue reading If Clueless People Shouldn’t Vote, Then Should Damon Linker?
Why The Big Government Land Deed Program Creates Growth-Destroying Distortions
One of the biggest government programs in the US is the land deed welfare program. Under this program, the government gives people the privilege to use the police to violently exclude everyone else from specific pieces of land denominated on pieces of paper called deeds. Through the operation of this guaranteed police violence, deed-holders are… Continue reading Why The Big Government Land Deed Program Creates Growth-Destroying Distortions