tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-46357403444176274292012-01-12T19:10:32.329-05:00Commentary, analysis, and links upholding reason, individualism, and capitalismDoug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.comBlogger5641100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-13179112158615307602011-11-29T17:12:00.001-05:002011-11-30T10:02:53.858-05:00

A frightening bill is now being debated in the Senate.  Quoting this article:   According to the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Defense Authorization Act will allow the U.S. military to declare national territory part of the "battlefield" in the “War on Terror.” Authored by U.S. Sen. Carl Levin, D-Michigan, and Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, the act would “permit the federal

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-82062268774613891762011-11-11T10:23:00.001-05:002011-11-11T10:26:11.712-05:00

Gary Johnson is by far the best presidential candidate:  @GovGaryJohnson .... http://www.garyjohnson2012.com/ Go check him out.

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-12141985112941072022011-11-03T11:49:00.001-04:002011-11-03T11:51:36.237-04:00

Look no further than Mangyongdae. "If you don’t want to have a near death experience on the few rides that actually work there are a few alternatives. One of them is to pay your money and take your chances at the shooting gallery where you can have a go at shooting an imperialist aggressor...."

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-10771900029071111402011-10-31T15:49:00.001-04:002011-10-31T15:50:53.367-04:00

I very much enjoyed Ari Armstrong's blog post on The Objective Standard titled "The Justice of Income Inequality Under Capitalism." He makes a crucial distinction not between the rich and poor or the "1% and 99%" but between "producers and looters."  That is, he distinguishes between those who work hard and produce or earn their wealth and those who do not, i.e., those who attempt to steal or

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-64855961585736740612011-10-25T11:12:00.002-04:002011-10-25T11:27:49.229-04:00

One of my favorite bloggers, Dr. Paul Hsieh (We Stand Firm), posts a Hospital Bill From 1960 saying: "One of my friends just sent me this copy of a hospital bill from 1960. This was for a relative of hers who had delivered a baby..." It shows that delivering a baby in 1960 cost $230.  This example demonstrates the devastating effects of general dollar inflation combined with medical inflation

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-50394876274794614262011-10-21T10:39:00.000-04:002011-10-21T10:40:46.642-04:00

Brilliant! See what happens... Thrutch: Offering Employment to Occupiers

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-21469263895182393202011-10-20T13:41:00.001-04:002011-10-20T13:41:07.946-04:00

Great post by Dr. George Reisman in which explains "how all of us, one hundred percent of us, benefit from the wealth of the hated capitalists. We benefit without ourselves being capitalists, or being capitalists to any great extent. The protesters are literally kept alive on the foundation of the wealth of the capitalists they hate.." He concludes: Thus, however ironic it may be, it turns out

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-54001791084588809832011-10-17T18:54:00.000-04:002011-10-24T11:58:47.933-04:00

“Do I really look like a guy with a plan? You know what I am? I’m a dog chasing cars. I wouldn’t know what to do with one if I caught it. You know, I just… do things” Joker, The Dark Knight I thought of the Joker's nihilistic ramblings while reflecting on some news related to the Occupy Wall Street protests. What did Obama’s utterly vacuous campaign slogan “change we can believe in”

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-16237807342548732302011-10-13T16:04:00.007-04:002011-10-21T10:29:36.469-04:00

As the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations have made abundantly clear, the modern left is a motley collection of intellectually bankrupt factions loosely united by their allegiance to vague, incoherent platitudes concerning a multitude of eh, well, concerns.  Evidently, these concerns range all the way from  “greed” (it’s bad - unless you are a movie star or a rapper) to warm weather in the year

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-75732899910061783232011-10-10T11:40:00.000-04:002011-10-10T11:40:20.933-04:00

How is that businesses left free of government interference manage to create an abundance of products in every type of industry (can you say i-pad, wide screen tv's, barbecues, etc.) yet, in sectors dominated by government regulation we virtually always see poorer quality products, rationing and shortages (public education, public housing, collectivized farming, etc.)? Bill Frezza, writing for

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-82855587627945753172011-10-05T12:18:00.000-04:002011-10-05T12:18:50.157-04:00

Great op-ed by Paul Hsieh on how government causes high health insurance costs, not the free market. 

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-53149091164594970282011-10-01T22:28:00.002-04:002011-10-01T22:28:40.433-04:00

Follow me @DougReich

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-28506486079092920522011-09-20T14:42:00.000-04:002011-09-20T14:42:19.230-04:00

Congressional testimony by Peter Schiff that Zerohedge calls "one of the most memorable such Congressional hearings on the topic to date." Hear, hear. 

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-49589692576299321742011-07-21T16:01:00.000-04:002011-07-21T16:01:29.936-04:00

Straight talk interview with Bernie Marcus, who co-founded Home Depot in 1978, in which he discusses how the regulations pouring out of Washington are choking the American economy: Having built a small business into a big one, I can tell you that today the impediments that the government imposes are impossible to deal with. Home Depot would never have succeeded if we'd tried to start it today.

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-38121382735534120472011-06-16T10:02:00.001-04:002011-06-16T10:36:52.200-04:00

If you were stranded on a deserted island and decided to lay on the beach 24 hours a day, within a few days, you would die.  From this observation, we can induce a simple principle: for an individual to survive, work must be done.  In other words, the fact that an individual must work to survive is not a choice or societal convention - it is a law of nature.    In an advanced society, this

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-72753176222405256962011-05-16T11:13:00.000-04:002011-05-16T11:13:54.651-04:00

I recommend George Will's recent op-ed pertaining to the Obama administration's attack on Boeing, yet another example of the left's general attack on the productive. He writes: Just as uncompetitive companies try to become wards of the government (beneficiaries of subsidies, tariffs, import quotas), unions unable to compete for workers’ allegiance solicit government compulsion to fill their

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-36954233305570360012011-05-12T09:19:00.000-04:002011-05-13T16:29:55.262-04:00

Remember what happened when the government forced banks to lend to people who couldn't afford mortgages (sub-prime lending) via the Community Reinvestment Act? Remember what happened when the government underwrote the loans through government sponsored enterprises (GSEs) such as Fannie and Freddie thus encouraging any and every bank and financial institution to directly and indirectly make

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-81606632099637753692011-05-11T10:01:00.002-04:002011-05-11T14:07:50.126-04:00

Bill Frezza explains how minimum wage laws lead to massive unemployment (by discouraging employers from hiring people!). I recommend reading his article.  Here is an excerpt.  The question minimum wage advocates never answer is; how are these unskilled youths supposed to climb the economic ladder if you pass laws that prevent them from getting their first job? How are they supposed to

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-77210133594193595322011-05-04T22:46:00.003-04:002011-05-16T14:24:33.940-04:00

Well, I'm back. I have temporarily emerged from my self-imposed blog exile to address a series of actions that are so egregious I could no longer resist. I am referring to a series of actions that threaten America's security and represent the essence of what is tearing this country apart. Whatever the actual facts, Osama bid Laden is held to be the mastermind behind 9/11 as well as other

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-39375713397959833572011-02-15T10:01:00.004-05:002011-02-15T13:30:54.515-05:00

Previously, I have documented Obama's Soviet style Department of Agitprop (whitehouse.gov) which does an "end-run" around traditional press coverage. Today, ABC's Devin Dwyer further documents this frightening trend in an excellent article titled Obama's Media Machine: State Run Media 2.0?. He writes: "The administration has narrowed access by the mainstream media to an unprecedented extent,"

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-24439826796202674892011-01-31T22:03:00.006-05:002011-02-01T09:12:47.980-05:00

One of the most absurd policies within Obamacare is the provision that forces insurance companies to cover those with pre-existing conditions.  As I posted previously, the notion of forcing insurance companies to cover pre-existing conditions obliterates the concept of insurance.  That is because no one would ever buy insurance if he knew he could simply buy it once something went wrong!  Denying

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-48906174911050223502011-01-31T09:46:00.000-05:002011-01-31T09:46:53.075-05:00

This article reports: The legislation, which would grant US President Barack Obama powers to seize control of and even shut down the internet, would soon be reintroduced to a senate committee, Wired.com reported.I previously posted about this issue here, and I have posted about the broader war on free speech here.

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-39532171135790536962011-01-27T12:36:00.001-05:002011-01-28T09:42:24.260-05:00

You can grasp a crucial premise underlying Obama's ideology by considering this little nugget from the state of the union: And if we truly care about our deficit, we simply cannot afford a permanent extension of the tax cuts for the wealthiest 2% of Americans. Before we take money away from our schools, or scholarships away from our students, we should ask millionaires to give up their tax break

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-39317648714018741012011-01-26T11:10:00.001-05:002011-01-26T11:33:52.001-05:00

Obama's state of the union address was a bloated mess of logical contradictions and inane platitudes.  He paid lip service to free enterprise while advocating massive government intervention in the economy.  He spoke of coping with the nation's catastrophic budget deficit while the members cheered his promise to save and preserve Leviathan's most egregious offender: social security and medicare/

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-64309564919454980132011-01-25T10:23:00.000-05:002011-01-25T10:23:07.680-05:00

Here is an excellent op-ed by Alex Epstein titled "The 6 Myths about Oil."  Also, Epstein discusses this op-ed on Front Page with Allen Barton at PJTV.

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-26005073577516623682011-01-13T23:33:00.008-05:002011-01-14T12:07:14.956-05:00

I recently wrote a post (and linked to another) debunking the left's claim that the ideology and rhetoric of the Tea Party, talk radio et al. are to blame for fomenting a "culture of hate" which necessarily leads to violence, i.e., I argued against the idea that the right's vehement opposition to the explosion of government power and debt constitutes incitement to violence. This idea, propounded

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-42995917513669461422011-01-12T17:00:00.001-05:002011-01-12T17:00:01.528-05:00

Nice.

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-51038014420303251162011-01-12T12:15:00.001-05:002011-01-12T12:16:52.605-05:00

Fantastic post from Edward Cline related to the left's attempts to equate the opposition to statism with psychosis - a topic I also posted about here.

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-54208065085595577522011-01-11T01:35:00.002-05:002011-01-11T09:28:20.666-05:00

A running theme on this blog for several years [1] [2], particularly during the recent elections and rise of the Tea Party movement, has been the nature of the left's attempts to smear their opposition as "hate mongers", "extremists", or racists.  Another related theme has been attempts by the left to restrict freedom of speech, for instance, by equating their opponents' rhetoric to hate speech, 

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-12215921180084706692011-01-06T11:20:00.069-05:002011-01-07T11:51:55.587-05:00

In physics, the concept of "absolute zero" is the theoretical minimum temperature – a temperature at which all molecular motion ceases. Defined as 0 degrees Kelvin, it is impossible to actually reach this temperature, although you can get close. The world record achieved by scientists is 100 picokelvins. Even virtual nothingness has some energy: the temperature of the universe is 2.73 Kelvins due

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-84756988383978850712011-01-03T15:35:00.002-05:002011-01-04T10:17:56.479-05:00

Here is an excellent lecture by the renowned economic historian, Niall Ferguson, titled "Empires on the Edge of Chaos."  Ferguson eloquently argues that the United States is on a path towards financial ruin as its extraordinary fiscal deficits reach crisis levels - levels that historically have resulted in the sudden (not gradual) collapse of the world's great empires.  While I do not agree with

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-57724317033382562992010-12-29T09:21:00.006-05:002011-01-05T14:38:22.908-05:00

"Housing Recovery Stalls."  I love headlines like this, because in a few simple words are embedded virtualy every economic fallacy of the last hundred years or so.  (It also ties into my recent series of posts on the Federal Reserve.)  According to this article: "A new bout of declining home prices is threatening to hamper the U.S. recovery, just as consumers and the overall economy have been

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-89450019819336538382010-12-28T00:05:00.012-05:002010-12-28T14:47:37.225-05:00

#1. Introduction #2. What is Money? #3 An Introduction to Paper Money #4 Fractional Reserve Banking, Inflation, and Boom-Bust In the last post in this series, I discussed some general concepts underlying fractional reserve banking (FRB), and I argued that it should not be upheld by the courts since it necessitates the recognition of a contradictory legal condition, i.e., it enables the the

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-38014702743774538282010-12-15T23:00:00.034-05:002010-12-16T10:09:28.128-05:00

#1. Introduction   #2. What is Money? #3. An Introduction to Paper Money Before delving into the origins, history and nature of the Fed, I'd like to offer some more general background to go along with my last post.  This section will set the stage for understanding, in principle, how the current financial crisis is not a random event but an endemic feature of the current monetary system 

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-80688409873335882072010-12-14T10:00:00.001-05:002010-12-14T10:00:02.769-05:00

The so-called tax bill compromise represents a total failure by Republicans to uphold the ideas they championed in the campaign.  Charles Krauthammer rightly argues that, although this has been characterized by liberal democrats as a sell out, it is actually a profound victory for Obama.  This bill did not "cut" taxes as has been alleged by the dems.  All it did was preserve the same tax rates

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-50893092548926045182010-12-13T11:53:00.007-05:002010-12-16T01:04:17.841-05:00

#1 Introduction.   #2. What is Money? If you lived in a simple civil society, how would you survive?  First, you’d have to do something -  like make a tool, cut down some wood, harvest some food, catch some fish, etc.  Otherwise, you would just lay there and die.  If you wanted something from someone else, you would not go up to them and say “give me your stuff!” without starting a fight –

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-53310389153484180732010-12-10T17:38:00.003-05:002010-12-11T00:28:01.671-05:00

I want to point out an excellent post that was linked inside another post on the same topic by Amit Ghate at Thrutch.  He has a fantastic insight regarding the concept of "recycling." Ghate writes: In fact, in a free society one wouldn’t distinguish recycling from other kinds of for-profit exchanges. That is, just as today when you re-sell your car or your house, you don’t think of it as “

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-45020528697237160762010-12-09T15:42:00.002-05:002010-12-09T16:42:22.195-05:00

I got a kick out of this Hill.com report on the House Democrats rejecting the tax cut deal.  Says Pelosi: “Democratic priorities remain clear: to provide a tax cut for working families, to create jobs and economic growth, to assist millions of our fellow Americans who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own, and to do this in a fiscally sound way.”Think about that statement.  Her "

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-7250550358075400842010-12-08T15:38:00.004-05:002010-12-09T11:28:29.643-05:00

In a series of previous posts (particularly, this one), I have attempted to document and analyze the left's continuing attempts to abrogate the right to free speech. If you are concerned about preserving the right to think and speak freely, two recent FCC proposals should be of concern.   One new regulation is designed to promote "diversity in news programming." FCC commissioner Michael Copps 

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-84639386819399478252010-12-07T11:04:00.088-05:002010-12-09T11:28:09.156-05:00

From the byzantine assortment of evil federal government agencies, if you were to ask me to single out the most appalling, the most menacing, the most sinister of them all - the one political cornerstone of the welfare state against which all defenders of freedom and individual rights should press their activist energy - I would answer that it is the one upon which all the others depend, i.e., 

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-77267046557995752010-12-06T10:06:00.002-05:002010-12-06T10:09:57.361-05:00

The essence of modern diplomacy is pretending that facts do not exist.  That is why diplomats around the world are scurrying for cover after the recent WikiLeaks dump has provided detailed evidence that diplomats know what everyone else in the world has known for the last decade. Iran's military "took advantage of the vacuum" left in the aftermath of the fall of Saddam and is a state sponsor of

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-34639211230045582512010-12-03T22:48:00.263-05:002010-12-06T13:31:25.474-05:00

Speaking at a U.N. sponsored climate summit in Cancun, [Bolivian President] Morales "has fingered capitalism as the root of many of the problems facing the world and has urged his fellow leaders to explore alternatives, such as a declaration of rights for the earth as a means of tackling climate change." Can an inanimate object have rights?  (I cannot believe I have to write that last sentence

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-4566909964876469402010-12-01T13:00:00.009-05:002010-12-06T13:30:24.740-05:00

The Center for Public Integrity reports that "the Obama administration has doled out billions of dollars in stimulus money to some of the nation’s biggest polluters and granted them sweeping exemptions from the most basic form of environmental oversight."  Their website reports: The administration has awarded more than 179,000 “categorical exclusions” to stimulus projects funded by federal

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-86468357063487586712010-11-24T14:56:00.009-05:002010-12-05T23:53:34.494-05:00

What is the relationship between economic or technological progress and political freedom? In a previous post that analyzed this question, I wrote: In her dystopian novella, Anthem, Ayn Rand demonstrated her keen understanding of the relationship between technological progress and political freedom by setting a future collectivist society, not in an advanced mechanized utopia, but in a devolving

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-38013845001746677592010-11-23T09:55:00.007-05:002010-11-23T10:12:23.694-05:00

In 1960 about half of federal spending was for a legitimate function of government - defense. Now, only 14% is for defense, and half of all federal spending is for interest and social security/medicare. (source: Heritage Foundation). Oh, and just to add insult to injury, not only are we not spending money to defend ourselves, evidently, we may be spending money to attack ourselves! Some of your

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-42058867041779567242010-11-22T09:08:00.005-05:002010-11-22T09:43:16.771-05:00

George Reisman has an excellent post on Harvard Professor N. Gregory Manikiw's claim that increasing taxes is reducing spending....the danger exists that Left and Right are about to unite to accomplish a colossal political fraud in the form of enormous tax increases sold to an unsuspecting public as reductions in government spending.Bill Frezza on how the government is "Criminalizng the Act of

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-83885866995149956432010-11-17T23:35:00.011-05:002010-11-18T13:39:14.564-05:00

In a previous post analyzing the tactics of modern liberals, I wrote: Since they [the left] take a non-conceptual or non-objective approach, they must rely on faith or belief in the absence of evidence which necessitates appealing to others on the basis of non-cognitive factors such as emotion or mysticism. Consequently, the left must urge others to believe their ideas, not because they can prove

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-25268983227381770162010-11-16T09:03:00.000-05:002010-11-16T09:04:00.031-05:00

I can't explain it any better!

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-72939710439651122242010-10-08T01:00:00.010-04:002010-10-08T09:54:46.048-04:00

Well, glad to be back after a few weeks of tending to some political activism, a very pregnant wife, and this thing I call my JOB. Thanks for checking back. To help clean my plate of an overwhelming pile of articles and topics, I've decided to create a new feature called "What I'm Thinking" as a less formal roundup of various topics to go along with my longer more formal posts. First, this blog

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-54435154732651757102010-09-11T20:30:00.006-04:002010-09-11T22:46:38.493-04:00

Harmony is not appeasement. In other words, if one guy says to another "if you speak, I will kill you," and the other shuts up, it is not an example of harmony. Harmony, in this context, is a state in which two sides agree to coexist peacefully which, in turn, objectively requires mutual respect for individual rights, i.e., the freedom to act without coercion or force. A law-abiding citizen can

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-52316439968077971672010-09-09T15:30:00.016-04:002010-09-10T10:01:06.727-04:00

Most people know Greece is in financial trouble. But, it would be hard to appreciate just how much trouble until you read Michael Lewis recent piece in Vanity Fair, Beware of Greeks Bearing Bonds. The summary reads: As Wall Street hangs on the question “Will Greece default?,” the author heads for riot-stricken Athens, and for the mysterious Vatopaidi monastery, which brought down the last

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-54896498992412906892010-09-08T10:57:00.005-04:002010-09-08T14:17:06.467-04:00

When a renowned Muslim cleric calls for the beheading of a Dutch politician, we hear nothing from Western leaders. However, when some reverend in Podunk, USA decides to burn some Quran's on his lawn, we get fiery condemnations from General Petraeus, the State Department, and the White House."Images of the burning of a Quran would undoubtedly be used by extremists in Afghanistan - and around the

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-75589078704085544652010-09-07T10:00:00.004-04:002010-09-08T14:19:40.307-04:00

Socialists love cards. Health care insurance cards, food ration cards, social security cards, etc. Much to the chagrin of those Venezuelans who like to eat, dictator Hugo Chávez has recently introduced his own special card: Presented by President Hugo Chávez as an instrument to make shopping for groceries easier, the "Good Life Card'' is making various segments of the population wary because they

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-63696587014382791402010-09-05T21:30:00.009-04:002010-09-06T13:10:42.617-04:00

(update: Part 1 of 3 is here. Part 2 and 3 follow). Based on the book "Financial Fiasco" by free market economist Johan Norberg, this is a great documentary that emphasizes a recurring theme on this blog. It traces the causes of the financial crisis and demonstrates how current government policies are replaying those same causes, setting the world economy up for an even bigger version of the

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-1731911708006137612010-09-04T11:15:00.001-04:002010-09-04T11:16:47.866-04:00

Here is an excellent post on the Tea Party movement by Robert Tracinski.

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-34450888297572382652010-09-03T15:00:00.001-04:002010-09-03T18:33:53.594-04:00

Karen Maley details Paolo Pellegrini's farewell letter to investors, in which he explains his view that government engineered market distortions have put the markets in a precariously binary state - between the recognition of short term stimulus effects and the almost certain longer term calamity of debt and stagnation.

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-15619743591395844212010-09-03T09:00:00.001-04:002010-09-03T09:04:41.693-04:00

Beth Haynes, founder of The Black Ribbon Project, wrote an excellent post rebutting the ethics of "social justice" which "the AMA is actively working in conjunction with Association of American Medical Colleges to inculcate [in] young physicians." This "social justice" movement goes hand in hand with efforts to turn doctors into indentured servants - placid appendages of the nascent state health

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-49555879275922640952010-08-31T08:50:00.009-04:002010-09-01T09:34:22.137-04:00

These reporters seem stunned to hear Roger's message which is, in essence, that central bankers can not fix the economy by printing more money. I also enjoy the false alternative proposed to Rogers between so-called "austerity" and "pumping in more money." Evidently, if the government stops spending other people's money on absurd projects this would qualify as "austerity." Instead, I would refer

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-6439601651854719262010-08-28T00:00:00.009-04:002010-08-28T10:45:55.032-04:00

My four year old son came to me recently and showed me a picture of a toy he wanted. Attempting to be a responsible dad, I explained that it cost money, but he could try and earn it by doing some work around the house. He was thrilled to hear this. After sweeping every room at full speed, he ran to his mom and demanded his pay - one fresh dollar bill. Proudly, he showed me his spoils. "Now can I

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-65556816131912477272010-08-24T00:05:00.004-04:002010-08-24T11:11:52.811-04:00

Ron Paul wrote this editorial related to the NYC mosque in which he essentially accuses those who oppose the mosque to be guilty of "demagoguery" and "Islamaphobia" arguing that the demonization of Islam is all part of an effort to justify unconstitutional and unnecessary wars in the Middle East. Paul states:There is no doubt that a small portion of radical, angry Islamists do want to kill us but

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-43438735751273833732010-08-20T08:39:00.007-04:002010-08-20T13:44:13.810-04:00

Following up on Part I, I would like to suggest a few additional principles related to the NYC mosque situation. As I suggested in Part I, I think there are two conditions to consider in regard to identifying an objective threat. First, the ideology by its nature must be antithetical to the principles of individual rights and a constitutional republican form of government. Second, the ideology

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-51898350456446939652010-08-19T14:00:00.003-04:002010-08-19T14:20:31.134-04:00

Generally, two sides have formed around the NYC mosque issue. One side says it is immoral or wrong to build a mosque so close to the 9/11 site, however, they have a legal right to do so. Another side says that it should be prevented legally, that is, the government should actively move to shut it down. I will not consider the side that actually promotes its existence. Since this argument has been

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-60234104438268506322010-08-18T20:27:00.016-04:002010-08-19T10:12:17.390-04:00

The title of this post is how a colleague summarized Peter Schiff's editorial on recent Fed actions. Schiff states:Just a few weeks ago, pundits were asking how Ben Bernanke would shrink the Fed's bloated post-crisis balance sheet. But in its August 10th decision, the Fed signaled that it would "recycle" its debt holdings; in other words, there would be no exit strategy for the foreseeable future

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-87284717521603844622010-08-09T13:24:00.009-04:002010-08-09T22:10:12.435-04:00

According to world renowned theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking, "it's time to free ourselves from Mother Earth.""I believe that the long-term future of the human race must be in space," Hawking tells Big Think. "It will be difficult enough to avoid disaster on planet Earth in the next hundred years, let alone the next thousand, or million. The human race shouldn't have all its eggs in one

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-873913873032603742010-08-06T08:00:00.001-04:002010-08-06T11:29:21.912-04:00

Remember the good ol' days when I used to post about the Global Warming fraud on a regular basis? Well, I guess the fact that Al Gore is in the news for, uh, other reasons underscores the theme of this post. Here is a Forbes article titled, The Death of Global Warming, and here is a great synopsis of the science by Dr. Roy Spencer titled, My Global Warming Skepticism, for Dummies. And, in case

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-62985338065260704892010-08-05T11:23:00.003-04:002010-08-05T11:26:23.304-04:00

James Pethokoukis reports: Main Street may be about to get its own gigantic bailout. Rumors are running wild from Washington to Wall Street that the Obama administration is about to order government-controlled lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to forgive a portion of the mortgage debt of millions of Americans who owe more than what their homes are worth. An estimated 15 million U.S. mortgages –

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-1487690068004025552010-08-04T09:00:00.001-04:002010-08-04T22:31:17.952-04:00

Here is a detailed chart put out by Rep. Kevin Brady and Sen. Sam Brownback. Brady's press release states:Four months after U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi famously declared "We have to pass the bill so you can find out what’s in it,"a congressional panel has released the first chart illustrating the 2,801 page health care law President Obama signed into law in March. He adds:In addition to

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-5866716052779609742010-08-03T18:00:00.005-04:002010-08-03T21:04:09.378-04:00

1. Resolved, That the several states composing the United States of America are not united on the principle of unlimited submission to their general government; but that, by compact, under the style and title of a Constitution for the United States, and of amendments thereto, they constituted a general government for special purposes, delegated to that government certain definite powers,

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-59777176619675864482010-08-02T20:58:00.007-04:002010-08-03T09:52:09.325-04:00

This is a truly amazing video. At a town hall meeting, a woman asks Rep. Pete Starks (D) a simple question. If health care is a "right", it means someone else must provide it, which means the federal government must compel someone either to provide the service or to pay for it. However, she asks, wouldn't this violate the 13th amendment prohibition on slavery? And, if the government can compel

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-43734585327272455542010-08-02T09:11:00.007-04:002010-08-02T22:02:59.816-04:00

Breaking with precedent and citing the "difficulty" of the decision, the Ministry of Truth has implicitly deemed Fox News to be an official news network. Thanks Whitehouse.gov!

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-90299031254929899112010-07-30T17:00:00.000-04:002010-07-30T17:00:02.516-04:00

Check it out!

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-63756931620283194252010-07-29T16:23:00.002-04:002010-07-30T10:09:12.189-04:00

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-52592212981333509842010-07-29T13:35:00.005-04:002010-07-29T15:20:26.870-04:00

Remember when Obama called the BP oil spill "the worst environmental disaster America has ever faced"? Well, according to this article, the damage has been largely exaggerated. Among other reasons, storm winds have helped evaporate the oil, and balmy temperatures help bacteria break it down. According to the article:Marine scientist Ivor Van Heerden, another former LSU prof who's working for a

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-56784416352940558002010-07-29T11:28:00.002-04:002010-07-29T11:33:18.934-04:00

Fortunately, the DISCLOSE ACT, which I wrote about here, has died. Debra J. Saunders provides a decent recap of the bill in her op-ed, A Shameless Charade on Disclosure. She writes: The Senate Democrats' "Disclose" Act - "Disclose" stands for "Democracy Is Strengthened by Casting Light on Spending in Elections" - represents perhaps the baldest, if failed, power grab attempted this year. But

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-53736387803892058522010-07-28T18:22:00.005-04:002010-07-28T22:39:26.193-04:00

I don't completely agree with his characterization of the problem, but I'm becoming a huge fan of NJ Gov. Chris Christie. Check this out.

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-87859863911432816172010-07-28T14:39:00.003-04:002010-07-28T14:44:04.129-04:00

I loved this hilarious Onion article on how thankful people of the Middle East are for religion. Excerpt: "Religion is the one thing that has never let us down," Taheri added over the low rumble of AK-47 fire emanating from the nearby home of a radical Israeli rabbi.Taheri is not alone. In a time of seemingly unending conflict between Israelis and Arabs, a growing number of Middle Easterners are

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-5983620969177716362010-07-26T21:47:00.006-04:002010-07-26T22:00:59.041-04:00

In the next day, the U.S. Senate is set to vote on the so-called DISCLOSE Act which I discussed here. Even the ACLU and Sierra Club oppose this bill. The ACLU states:The Senate today and tomorrow will debate a campaign finance bill that includes disclosure requirements that raise significant civil liberties concerns. The American Civil Liberties Union is urging senators to vote against the bill

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-39429320852180204492010-07-26T20:55:00.005-04:002010-07-27T09:11:28.008-04:00

Excellent piece by Bill Frezza.

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-44040104299638119672010-07-24T23:51:00.021-04:002010-07-25T10:28:50.118-04:00

Here is a shocker that could never have been predicted: A health care system relying on government bureaucrats, who are not motivated by profit but only maintaining their cushy government jobs, results in layers of bureaucracy and inefficiency, while customers expecting "free" health care cause demand and costs to spiral out of control. Intransigent socialist central planners then demand more

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-50113048214423759112010-07-22T22:19:00.007-04:002010-07-22T22:45:46.377-04:00

I randomly read two articles in a row, and it struck me that they almost perfectly serve to clarify two sides in a profound debate. The first article was related to Oliver Stone's claim that various American industries should be nationalized a la socialist dictator Hugo Chavez, the subject of his recent fawning propaganda film. The second article was an op-ed by Yaron Brook, Atlas Shrugged's

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-36547246891958851802010-07-21T08:00:00.019-04:002010-07-30T11:30:46.335-04:00

Although the official unemployment rate stands at about 9.5%, more realistic and accurate assessments put the number at closer to 20-30% (notwithstanding the ridiculous claims of the Obama administration). What is causing unemployment? After all, have people run out of ideas to improve their lives? Have all human desires vanished? Does no one wish to innovate and produce? Is there no work left

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-69881611383037998672010-07-20T08:00:00.009-04:002010-07-20T13:31:44.635-04:00

Say that an intruder breaks into your house and shoots you in the stomach. He then robs you, but at the last minute, as he scurries away, he forgets to cut your phone line. This misstep enables you to crawl to the phone and call an ambulance, which rushes you to the hospital where your life is saved. Would it be fair to conclude that the robber saved your life?If you think that argument would be

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-61887716345605353972010-07-19T15:00:00.008-04:002010-07-19T21:55:39.422-04:00

Two articles I read today struck me as being critical in understanding the escalating war on the free expression of ideas - an effort I have continued to chronicle. First, Philip Giraldi, writing for Campaign for Liberty, details the increasing and disturbing level of government intervention into the internet. He writes: A recent trip to Europe has convinced me that the governments of the world

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-45264267354351480322010-07-19T08:00:00.002-04:002010-07-19T10:21:51.017-04:00

I can't resist briefly commenting on a story that serves to integrate two recent themes. The Washington Post Ombudsman, Andrew Alexander, takes his paper to task for not covering a major scandal which I discussed previously: Thursday's Post reported about a growing controversy over the Justice Department's decision to scale down a voter-intimidation case against members of the New Black Panther

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-40956826144440982672010-07-16T09:11:00.008-04:002010-07-18T16:59:27.174-04:00

Last year, I wrote a post explaining why liberals vote for bills they don't read or understand titled, Why Liberals Don't Read Their Bills, Evade Their Constituents, but "Penetrate the Message Wars." In the wake of yet another Washington boondoggle that fails to address the underlying causes of the present economic crisis, that is, causes which consist of the same forms of government intervention

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-51032357732921671362010-07-15T14:02:00.004-04:002010-07-15T15:51:55.136-04:00

WSJ's Daniel Henninger warns: Barack Obama's incredible "recess appointment" of Dr. Donald Berwick to head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is probably the most significant domestic-policy personnel decision in a generation. It is more important to the direction of the country than Elena Kagan's nomination to the Supreme Court. The court's decisions are subject to the

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-78796411336324273052010-07-14T17:31:00.006-04:002010-07-14T17:48:07.965-04:00

Molly Norris and anyone else who participated in "Everyone Draw Mohammed Day!" now knows what a fatwa is. I encourage you to read Edward Cline's excellent post, Everybody Drew a Fatwa. He writes: The Islamists mean to censor us one way or another: if not from fear of retaliation, then by retaliation. Shut your mouth, still your pens, stop thinking, or we will do it for you. Permanently.

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-65347096765297842672010-07-12T08:00:00.018-04:002010-07-18T00:08:06.401-04:00

The first thing that always strikes me when reading liberal writers is how distant they are from any serious consideration of the philosophic essentials of their own ideology (much less their opponent's). In several previous posts, I examined this fact and argued that it is crucial to examine the left's underlying philosophy both to understand why the conservatives and libertarians have failed to

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-33440522400928371512010-07-06T11:34:00.007-04:002010-07-06T14:31:42.891-04:00

Was this propaganda film made yesterday, or in 1933, just as FDR confiscated the nation's gold? Was that professor in the film Paul Krugman? Couldn't tell. Evidently, no new knowledge has entered the mainstream economics profession since this film was made. Just print money! "Happy Days Are Here Again!"

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-21738409510902103652010-07-06T00:01:00.014-04:002010-07-06T09:49:51.537-04:00

From the beginning, the Obama regime has made it clear that they are serious about carefully controlling the media. While this is to be expected from virtually any political regime, the Obama administration has taken these efforts to a frightening level.Previously, I documented the creation of a Soviet style Department of Agitprop (http://www.whitehouse.gov/) and discussed a dust up between the

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-63954606393222925612010-07-04T10:09:00.007-04:002010-07-05T23:39:39.932-04:00

In the wake of the Declaration of Independence, Adams was able to write the following, even as the British fleet, the greatest armada in history to that point, was bearing down on New York. So, as frustrated as I am with the state of our nation, I will be optimistic for a day and celebrate what America was and could be. "The Second Day of July 1776, will be the most memorable Epocha, in the

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-47572415956428798842010-07-01T17:41:00.007-04:002010-07-02T10:02:06.552-04:00

Evidently, Nancy Pelosi has made a profound discovery. It is a breakthrough that, if real, promises to usher in a new age of prosperity and to transform the modern world into a veritable Land of Cockaigne. What is this breathtaking revelation? In this video, the Grand Madame explains:Unemployment insurance... this is one of the biggest stimuluses [sic] to our economy. Economists will tell you,

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-45717229892833125122010-07-01T00:12:00.010-04:002010-07-01T01:23:48.592-04:00

We know from the First Law of Thermodynamics that energy can not be created or destroyed. It follows from this law, that everything in the universe has always existed in some form.Yet, I often hear scientific claims related to the "dawn of the universe" or "the beginning of time." Evidently, the universe is believed to be 13.7 billion years old, and, some scientists even hold that discussions of

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-64532550424875009902010-06-30T13:26:00.007-04:002010-06-30T21:50:43.644-04:00

I have experienced this phenomenon many times, but I didn't realize it is an official effect: The Dunning–Kruger effect is a cognitive bias in which an unskilled person makes poor decisions and reaches erroneous conclusions, but their incompetence denies them the metacognitive ability to realize their mistakes. The unskilled therefore suffer from illusory superiority, rating their own ability as

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-91454726595548183642010-06-29T09:29:00.005-04:002010-06-29T09:49:46.196-04:00

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are so-called "government-sponsored enterprises" which purchase loans and repackage them into investable securities backed by the federal government, i.e., the taxpayers. Created in the 1930's by the federal government, these entities effectively subsidize homeowners by making the cost of credit cheaper than otherwise. Bloomberg reports on the potential cost of bailing

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-19862155215720013152010-06-28T13:41:00.006-04:002010-06-29T08:58:36.160-04:00

If you ever want to experience the suffocating, almost surreal, horror of life under dictatorship, watch this amazing documentary, Vice Guide to North Korea (part 1, part 2, part 3). After a difficult and "weird process", two journalists manage to get into North Korea and sneak footage while under the ever present monitoring of their "tour guides." Interspersed throughout are segments of a

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-63391593083473909542010-06-25T08:59:00.015-04:002010-06-25T17:04:41.504-04:00

I've been enjoying the ridiculous debate taking place in Europe related to the concept of "austerity" vs. economic prosperity. According to this article: World leaders from the U.K.’s David Cameron to Naoto Kan of Japan are betting they can deliver fiscal austerity without derailing economic prosperity. History suggests they may be right. In case you haven't been paying attention, Europe has been

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-87207669557017046752010-06-24T09:07:00.008-04:002010-06-24T12:08:20.429-04:00

Hey dads, the Dear Leader has some questions for you: Being a dad can be one of the most fulfilling roles a man can have. But there is a lot that goes into it. Are you important? Should your kid really be doing that at 24 months? How important is it that you go to the parent teacher conference? And just how do you put that car seat in right? Whoa, those are some "important" questions? But don't

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-87741901248357100652010-06-23T15:21:00.009-04:002010-06-23T15:44:11.745-04:00

If you have one million television sets and you want to sell them but no one wants to buy them, what should you do? If you want to sell your home, but no one wants to buy it, what should you do? If you want to work, but no one will hire you, what should you do? If you said: "LOWER THE ASKING PRICE!," then you would be likely to sell TVs, sell your home, and find a job. On the other hand, if you

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4635740344417627429.post-24741570819748858532010-06-23T08:51:00.002-04:002010-06-23T08:53:22.963-04:00

I found this interesting (and I thought my title was clever).

Doug Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06641716225847901280noreply@blogger.com0