AUSTRIAN ECONOMICS ADDICT

 The pen is mightier than the sword… (Photo credit: mbshane)

Border Patrol Agents Contracting Scabies, Agent Who Speaks Out, Given Cease And Desist Order, at benswann.com. The truth about the conditions in these detention centers is what individuals higher up the Government food chain don’t want anyone to find out. “Because I stood up and told the truth they are going to terminate me and I am going to fight it” says Agent Ron Zermeno. ‘He went on to say that his bosses are more worried about their promotions and their bonuses than protecting the country’. No matter what side of this issue you are on, can we all agree that politicians and bureaucrats in Government have made a complete mess of the situation because politics trumps logic and reason.

ER Use Skyrocketing With Obamacare, by Ed Morrissey, at hotair.com. Once again the unintended (or possibly intended) consequences of Government intervention in the free market rear their ugly head. Prices coordinate supply and demand. but when Government policies incentivise demand and constrain supply, well you figure it out.

The New US Tax Form, at zerohedge.com. This is supposed to be a bit of humor,but the question has to be asked: if individuals in the IRS don’t have to comply with the law, why would anyone expect the rest of us to comply with the law? The break down of the rule of law happens incrementally over a long period of time, and then at some point the marginal straw finally breaks the camels back.

Finally A Loss For Socialist Kshama Sawant In Seattle, at economicpolicyjournal.com. Do Uber and Lyft realize this is just an incremental step toward more Gov. control, and not a win for the free market. Here is an excerpt, “There will be no cap on the number of for-hire drivers: We have deregulated a highly regulated monopoly,” Seattle Mayor Ed Murray said. It should be noted, though, that this step is far from a complete free market step. UberX and Lyft will now be part of a new government created cartel, that will limit others from entering the Seattle taxi industry. The city will only issue 200 new taxi licenses over the next four years. Taxi and for-hire drivers will see their licenses “transfer into a property right” on the order of New York’s valuable taxi medallions.” This reminds me of the analogy Walter E. Williams uses, This is like someone who comes into your yard, rips out your tulips and plants roses, and then gets you to argue the merits of tulips vs. roses, instead of you telling him he had no right to rip out your tulips in the first place.

Canada Pulls The Plug On Delayed Keystone XL Pipeline: Will Instead Send Oil To Asia Via A New Pipeline, by Mark J. Perry, at aie-ideas.org. How many jobs did the President sacrificed at the altar of radical environmentalism. These lost jobs are the unseen consequences that are results of every Government intervention. The benefit of the jobs and wealth that would be created out weighs the risk, not a guarantee, just a minimal risk of a possible environmental problem. The environmentalists are not willing to trade-off any amount of risk, no matter how small, for any amount of economic gain, no matter how big.

Yet Another Leak In The Establishment Ship, by Chris Rossini, at economicpolicyjournal.com. This information age brought about by technological innovation that couldn’t have been imagined 15 years ago,  is starting to over take the status quo propaganda outlets of the Government central planning crowd. News papers and TV news have been in decline for years. Now Hollywood’s influence along with the education monopoly are loosing their hold. As the article says, “this is a positive sign for liberty”.

Freedom Summed Up In One Image, at zerohedge.com. When I saw this sign, I thought it was parody from The Onion. This sign shows how people in positions of power will wield it, to try to control everything you do. They are smarter than you!

Leaving Illinois For Texas, by Mark J. Perry, at aei-ideas.org. Another example of unintended consequences of Government intervention. People are leaving States when the cost of regulation and taxes gets too high. People on the margin leave, and the with the next round of regulations the next group of people on the margin will leave, (as long as there is a lower cost place to escape to).

When Steelers Steal, by Christopher Westley, at mises.org. This is our heavy lifting for the day. Bastiat talked about ‘that which is seen, and that which is not seen’. This article shows the history of the steel industry through the lens of unseen consequences. Government intervention doesn’t happen in a vacuum. The affects of the intervention are like the expanding ripples from a rock being tossed into a pond.

A Typical Day For Southwest Airlines, at economicpolicyjournal.com. This is just Southwest Airlines shown on this time lapse video. What do the skies look like if all planes from all airlines were shown? Well here it is, A Day In The Life Of Air Traffic Over The United States.

45 Perfectly Timed Photographs, at induldged.com. These are outstanding. I saw this at angryid.wordpress.com.