Liberty Maven

Today I came across a great article by Lew Rockwell that I feel the need to share with the readers of Liberty Maven.  I don’t have much to say about it besides “it’s great!” and “read it now!”   Here it is:

President Obama is under the impression that history owes him $1 trillion right now to spend on whatever he wants. His language is strident and full of irritation that anyone would question his right to live out his personal dream of being Franklin Roosevelt to George Bush’s Hoover. This, he says, is what the election was all about.

The arrogance reminds me of George Bush after 9-11, who similarly believed that history owed him a gargantuan war in the tradition of FDR. And look how that arrogance led to disgrace and loss, as he unwittingly presided over the destruction of American prosperity while searching for bugbears abroad.

It just goes to show you that the presidency is something like a drug. It makes people lose all connection to reality. Part of the reality that Obama needs to recognize is that the New Deal was a calamity far worse than the initial market downturn that began it. He needs to stop basing his policies on dumbed-down civics texts versions of events and consider the economic logic. [Continue]

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“We are being ripped off!” “There’s going to be a revolt in this country!”

These are the words of Gerald Celente on the latest Lew Rockwell podcast. Celente certainly has a sense for the melodramatic, but the interesting thing is that so many of the  predictions found in his Trends Journal newsletter have come true.

He claims that the panic of 2008 will become the collapse of 2009 and there’s going to be “the worst living conditions that we’ve ever faced in this country.” These words are quite scary and almost unthinkable for most of us.

I include myself among those skeptical of such claims, but every time I look at the writing on the wall it becomes more difficult to remain skeptical.

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The title is merely the vibe I got from listening to the latest Lew Rockwell Show podcast starring Ron Paul delivering a speech at the Mises circle in Houston, Texas.

When we watch Ron Paul give interviews on television he rarely has a chance to attempt humor or reveal the man behind the message. This speech is very different. He makes humorous remarks (sarcastic mostly) and reveals a bit of the Austrian economics grandfatherly figure he has become.

If you haven’t already done so take the time and go back and listen to all of the Lew Rockwell podcasts. Almost every single one will give you insight into something you may not know much about.

Or listen to Ron Paul hang out with friends on the latest podcast here.

Another masterpiece in the Lew Rockwell collection is an article based off a talk he gave at the 2009 Jeremy Davis Mises Circle in Houston.  This is a must read:

We are fortunate to be living in these times, for we are seeing the unfolding of events long explained and predicted by the Austrian tradition.

Maybe that sounds implausible. What is fortunate about our times? The economy is tanking, stocks have been pummeled, unemployment is rising, and Washington is pursuing the worst combination of economic policies since Hoover and FDR. Nor does the new guy in charge seem to have a clue about the limits of what government can do.

Consider what it means to live through our times in the light of economic understanding. Even in the face of calamity, there is no mystery and hence fear is reduced. You look at department stores going belly-up, and you know why. You see parking lots empty, and you know the reason. You have friends losing their jobs, and there is clarity concerning the cause. You see depositors in failing banks lose their money, and you are not surprised. Prices behave in ways that shock and surprise everyone else, but you know what’s what.

In many ways, it is like watching the movement of stars and planets with the scientific knowledge provided by astronomy, or observing the effects of a plague with medical knowledge.

Without the understanding, the events look mysterious, like a curse from the gods, and their patterns appear random. With the knowledge, with the understanding, we can make sense of the events. Patterns of cause and effect emerge. You see events before they happen, like turning the page of a script before the movie catches up to you. This gives you a sense of intellectual coherence and inner peace – even in the midst of calamity.(Continue reading).

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In Lew Rockwell’s latest article he tells us why we are experiencing this financial crisis. He also asserts that given the state of our economy and political culture there are reasons to be hopeful.

Will this go on for ten years like the last time? Will it end in World War III, as if following some historical script? Is it possible that we will go the way of Germany in the 1920s, straight into the abyss of hyperinflation and into the hands of a ghastly dictator? It is unwise to rule it out.

And yet, I’m not that pessimistic. It is extremely crucial to realize that there is a difference this time. In the 1930s, technological limits put severe restrictions on information delivery. Government propaganda easily dominated the culture. All of that has changed. Despite everything, people simply do not trust the government as they once did. Obama will enjoy a short honeymoon but it will be over by summer.

He ends with a wonderful quote from Ludwig Von Mises. To read it check out the entire article.

Using the words “state” and “force” in a title may be redundant, but this time the market is doing its job forcing the states to reevaluate holding certain physical assets. Many states in America are desperate for money. A few states have started considering  selling off public roads, lands, infrastructure, and services to help with the bottom line.

From an AP article:

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota is deep in the hole financially, but the state still owns a premier golf resort, a sprawling amateur sports complex, a big airport, a major zoo and land holdings the size of the Central American country of Belize.

Valuables like these are in for a closer look as 44 states cope with deficits.

Like families pawning the silver to get through a tight spot, states such as Minnesota, New York, Massachusetts and Illinois are thinking of selling or leasing toll roads, parks, lotteries and other assets to raise desperately needed cash.

I’d much rather this be done willingly rather than in desperation. Initially I can’t help but applaud such moves toward privatization. However, I wonder if the desperation road is marked with elusive potholes.

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On the latest LewRockwell.com podcast Ron Paul is the guest. They talk for over 18 minutes regarding the series of bailouts our lovely federal government has brought forth.

He begins by suggesting that perhaps they don’t really care directly about the bailouts but rather their ultimate goal may be nationalization.

However, he does speak of having hope about the prospects for liberty in America’s future.

Have a listen

Austrian economists are quick to point out that recession and market correction are an extremely critical part of how a healthy economy functions. Lew Rockwell, in his article called The Force Is With Us, points to some of the more obvious positive features of the current economic downturn:

It is a marvelous thing to see the market work, in good times and bad. Just look at the way that marvelous, unplanned barometer of wise resource use – the price system – has reacted in response to the human reality of economic downturn.

As we prepare for the future with the holidays upon us, consumers are wondering whether it is a wise thing to take on too many new financial burdens. They are cutting back and still somewhat indecisive about economic climate. For most people, the only real evidence of downturn they see is the devastation that has been wrought on their retirement accounts. This causes quite a psychological hesitation to buy.

He then goes on to discuss the Keynesian error, and the disastrous actions the Fed is taking to avoid the inevitable and necessary recessionary symptoms we are seeing.

As the Austrians have long said, the recession is a necessary phase. It is not an economic blight but a tonic that heals. If we let the market work without trying to interfere with its operations, we will see that the recession will bottom out and the economy prepare for future of growth.

…There is nothing that the government can do today – apart from repealing laws and regulations – that will make an improvement on the workings of the market. As Mises wrote in Profit and Loss, the price system is our guide to both success and failure under conditions of freedom. We need to be as tolerant toward one tendency as the other.

Read Lew Rockwell’s article here.