The Lighthouse®
The tax exclusion for employer-provided health coverage is a highly regressive form of subsidy, providing a benefit to families in the top tenth of the income distribution about 30 times as much as the benefit to families in the bottom tenth. A far better alternative is the comprehensive health reform proposed by Rep. Pete Sessions of Texas and Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana.
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By William F. Shughart II (The Beacon, 8/3/20)
Last month’s House Judiciary Committee saw the CEOs of Amazon, Apple, Google, and Facebook try to defend their business practices from charges that miss the bigger picture. No one is forced to deal with any of these companies, and none of them are “monopolists”—a term that is much overused, especially in high-technology markets.
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By Lawrence J. McQuillan (The Beacon, 7/24/20)
Hong Kong’s new “national security” law is a massive setback for the rights, liberties, and security of the former British colony’s 7.5 million residents. Independent Institute President and CEO David J. Theroux and Senior Fellow Lawrence J. McQuillan join 68 other leading advocates for freedom from around the world by signing an open letter in solidarity with the people of Hong Kong.
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By Richard K. Vedder (Forbes, 7/27/20)
A recent poll found that 67 percent of the 2,700 respondents thought American colleges and universities put “their own institutional interests” first, while only 9 percent thought they make “student interests” their top priority and 4 percent thought the schools attempt to serve “the greater good.” To win renewed public favor, colleges must slash costs and fees, return to rigorous instruction that prepares students for both good jobs and responsible citizenship, and expand the frontiers of knowledge through high-quality research.
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By Ivan Eland (The American Conservative, 8/6/20)
Instead of dropping atomic bombs over Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the U.S. military could have blockaded Japan and thereby saved hundreds of thousands of civilian lives. A naval blockade, however, would not have fulfilled perhaps the real purpose of dropping atomic bombs—to fire a warning shot at the Soviet Union.
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Volume 22, Issue 31: August 11, 2020
By John C. Goodman (Forbes, 7/30/20)
The tax exclusion for employer-provided health coverage is a highly regressive form of subsidy, providing a benefit to families in the top tenth of the income distribution about 30 times as much as the benefit to families in the bottom tenth. A far better alternative is the comprehensive health reform proposed by Rep. Pete Sessions of Texas and Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana.
READ MORE »
By William F. Shughart II (The Beacon, 8/3/20)
Last month’s House Judiciary Committee saw the CEOs of Amazon, Apple, Google, and Facebook try to defend their business practices from charges that miss the bigger picture. No one is forced to deal with any of these companies, and none of them are “monopolists”—a term that is much overused, especially in high-technology markets.
READ MORE »
By Lawrence J. McQuillan (The Beacon, 7/24/20)
Hong Kong’s new “national security” law is a massive setback for the rights, liberties, and security of the former British colony’s 7.5 million residents. Independent Institute President and CEO David J. Theroux and Senior Fellow Lawrence J. McQuillan join 68 other leading advocates for freedom from around the world by signing an open letter in solidarity with the people of Hong Kong.
READ MORE »
By Richard K. Vedder (Forbes, 7/27/20)
A recent poll found that 67 percent of the 2,700 respondents thought American colleges and universities put “their own institutional interests” first, while only 9 percent thought they make “student interests” their top priority and 4 percent thought the schools attempt to serve “the greater good.” To win renewed public favor, colleges must slash costs and fees, return to rigorous instruction that prepares students for both good jobs and responsible citizenship, and expand the frontiers of knowledge through high-quality research.
READ MORE »
By Ivan Eland (The American Conservative, 8/6/20)
Instead of dropping atomic bombs over Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the U.S. military could have blockaded Japan and thereby saved hundreds of thousands of civilian lives. A naval blockade, however, would not have fulfilled perhaps the real purpose of dropping atomic bombs—to fire a warning shot at the Soviet Union.
READ MORE »
The Beacon: New Blog Posts
- Advanced Introduction to the Austrian School of Economics, by Randall G. Holcombe
- As the Pandemic Demonstrates, Leviathan Feeds on National Crises, by Craig Eyermann
- California Supreme Court Curtails Pension Abuse by Law Enforcement Officers, Others, by Lawrence J. McQuillan
- When Reimagining the Police, Remember These Cases, by K. Lloyd Billingsley
- Trump Signs More Executive Orders as a Last-Ditch Effort to Lower Drug Prices, by Raymond J. March
- What Bezos, Cook, Pinchai and Zuckerberg Should Have Told Congress about Antitrust Hysteria, by William F. Shughart II
- Lessons from Wilford Brimley’s Best Performance, by K. Lloyd Billingsley
Catalyst: New Articles
- Art Deco – an Ode to Urban Glamour, by Scott Beyer
- Bezos, Zuckerberg and Congressional Antitrust Hysteria, by William F. Shughart II
- Violence in Portland Is Not ‘Just Property Damage’, by Brad Polumbo
- Media Groupthink Comes for Sweden , by Luka Ladan
- Parents and Students to Lose Freedom of Choice, by K. Lloyd Billingsley
- Removing Regulations in Response to COVID-19, by Conor Norris
- How ‘Self-Censorship’ Hurts Free Speech, by Brad Polumbo
