Voice for Liberty

May

Wichita taxicab regulations likely to impede progress

Tomorrow the Wichita City Council will consider new taxicab regulations that, city hall hopes, will improve tax service in Wichita. But the regulations create high barriers to entry that stifle entrepreneurship and market competition, likely dooming the program to fail. The problem is that some feel that Wichita's taxicab companies are not delivering good service. There have been complaints about both the drivers and the conditions of cabs. Wichita Mayor Carl Brewer said he was tired of hearing complaints about the taxicabs. He has tired slowly, however, as it's taken eleven years of Brewer as either city council member or…

May

By Bob Weeks

Pompeo: Ending tax credits for energy doesn’t violate pledge

In a news conference last week, U.S. Representative Mike Pompeo of Wichita and two others criticized President Barack Obama for misunderstanding of the meaning of a taxpayer protection pledge that Pompeo has signed. The pledge is the famous pledge advanced by Grover Norquist of Americans for Tax Reform, where signers pledge not to increase taxes. The "tax increase" the president refers to are various tax credits that benefit some forms of energy production, particularly wind and solar power. Norquist, along with Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina, participated in the conference. Pompeo said the president "called out" those who signed…

May

By Guest Author

Myth: All relations among humans can be reduced to market relations

When thinking about the difference between government action and action taken by free people trading voluntarily in markets, we find that many myths abound. Tom G. Palmer, who is Vice President for International Programs at the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, General Director of the Atlas Global Initiative for Free Trade, Peace, and Prosperity, a Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute, and Director of Cato University, has written an important paper that confronts these myths about markets. The nineteenth myth -- All Relations Among Humans Can Be Reduced to Market Relations -- and Palmer's refutation is below. The complete series of…

May

By Bob Weeks

Palmer, activist for capitalism, to speak in Wichita

I'd like to call your attention to, and invite you to attend, a lecture next week in Wichita. The speaker is Tom G. Palmer, and he will be speaking on topics from his recent book The Morality of Capitalism. I met Tom last year when I spent my summer vacation attending Cato University, which Tom is director of. He is a fascinating speaker. His background includes feats such as smuggling books, photocopiers, and faxes into the Soviet Union. Currently he is Vice President for International Programs at the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, General Director of the Atlas Global Initiative for…

May

By Bob Weeks

Kansas and Wichita quick takes: Thursday May 10, 2012

Kansas tax reform. A message from Americans for Prosperity, Kansas: "'Today's vote on a much-needed tax reform bill will provide an immediate boost to Kansas families and businesses,' said AFP-Kansas state director Derrick Sontag. 'The approved tax bill cuts the income tax for Kansas families and small businesses, which is certainly good news for taxpayers. The current leadership of the state Senate helped lead Kansas down a path of economic destruction as indicated by the past decade being one of lost private sector jobs, stagnant population growth, and taxpayers fleeing to other states. Yet in spite of all the evidence…

May

By Guest Author

Myth: Privatizaton and marketization in post-communist societies were corrupt, which shows that markets are corrupting

When thinking about the difference between government action and action taken by free people trading voluntarily in markets, we find that many myths abound. Tom G. Palmer, who is Vice President for International Programs at the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, General Director of the Atlas Global Initiative for Free Trade, Peace, and Prosperity, a Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute, and Director of Cato University, has written an important paper that confronts these myths about markets. The eighteenth myth -- Privatizaton and Marketization in Post-Communist Societies Were Corrupt, Which Shows that Markets Are Corrupting -- and Palmer's refutation is below.…

May

By Guest Author

Myth: When prices are liberalized and subject to market forces, they just go up

When thinking about the difference between government action and action taken by free people trading voluntarily in markets, we find that many myths abound. Tom G. Palmer, who is Vice President for International Programs at the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, General Director of the Atlas Global Initiative for Free Trade, Peace, and Prosperity, a Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute, and Director of Cato University, has written an important paper that confronts these myths about markets. The seventeenth myth -- When Prices are Liberalized and Subject to Market Forces, They Just Go Up -- and Palmer's refutation is below. The…

May

By Guest Author

Myth: Markets only benefit the rich and talented

When thinking about the difference between government action and action taken by free people trading voluntarily in markets, we find that many myths abound. Tom G. Palmer, who is Vice President for International Programs at the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, General Director of the Atlas Global Initiative for Free Trade, Peace, and Prosperity, a Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute, and Director of Cato University, has written an important paper that confronts these myths about markets. The sixteenth myth -- Markets Only Benefit the Rich and Talented -- and Palmer's refutation is below. The complete series of myths and responses…

May

By Bob Weeks

Intellectuals vs. the rest of us

At a recent educational meeting I attended, someone asked the question: Why doesn't everyone believe what we (most of the people attending) believe: that private property and free exchange -- capitalism, in other words -- are superior to government intervention and control over the economy? It's question that I've asked at conferences I've attended. The most hopeful answer is ignorance. While that may seem a harsh word to use, ignorance is simply a "state of being uninformed." That can be cured by education. This is the reason for this website. This is the reason why I and others testify in…

May

By Bob Weeks

Political cronyism has become the way

"A society whose businesses engage in cronyism instead of serving people will not be prosperous, and in America it is clear that cronyism is becoming a more common choice," writes Sam Patterson at EconomicFreedom.org. Cronyism is the practice of seeking business success through government rather than through markets. The difference is that business succeeds in the market by providing goods and services that people are willing to buy. Political cronyism, on the other hand, results in people being forced to buy from, or to otherwise involuntarily subsidize, certain business firms that have succeeded in the political arena. In Kansas, despite…

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