Learn Liberty Blog
We tackle big questions about what makes society free or prosperous and how we can improve the world we live in.
Blog Posts in Focus
Five myths about healthcare
April 1, 2022 | Nazlican Kanmaz
Healthcare in the United States is Pandora’s Box: even the mere thought of it releases physical and emotional curses upon policymakers.
Five myths about inflation
April 12, 2022 | Russell Coates
In order to be able to address the root problems of inflation, we need to dispel some common myths. Here are our top five picks:
Legends of Liberty: Lysander Spooner
November 18, 2021 | Learn Liberty Team
As we witnessed during the 2020 election season, and as we are sure to witness during the upcoming holiday season, the United States Postal Service doesn’t exactly instill confidence.
Blog Posts
Every Flaw in Consumers Is Worse in Voters
October 29, 2015 | Michael Munger
I have been making a mistake for most of my life. See, I’m an economist, and one of the things that attracted me to economics is the notion of the “ideal economy.” Of course, there are valid objections to the use of markets. There are people who cheat and commit fraud, and there are problems […]
Foundation for Economic Education: The Ghosts of Spying Past
October 29, 2015 |
This post originally appeared on FEE.org on July 8th, 2015. Below is an excerpt. In the early days, the Internet was thoroughly insecure; its governmental and academic users trusted each other, and the occasional student prank couldn’t cause much damage. As it started becoming available to everyone in the early ‘90s, people saw the huge […]
Art Carden: Illegal Immigrants Don't Lower Our Wages Or Take Our Jobs
October 28, 2015 |
Below is an excerpt of a post that appeared at Forbes.com on August 28th, 2015. According to an April 2015 symposium on the effects of illegal immigrants in the Southern Economic Journal, illegal immigrants actually raise wages for documented/native workers. Meanwhile, rules preventing illegal immigrants from getting driver’s licenses raise our car insurance premiums and […]
New York Times’ Solution to Fiscal Problems: Eat the Rich
October 28, 2015 |
The New York Times came out with an article last weekend claiming how much good raising taxes on the country’s wealthiest could do: [W]hat could a tax-the-rich plan actually achieve? As it turns out, quite a lot… the government could raise large amounts of revenue exclusively from this small group, while still allowing them to […]
Staff Profile: Sloane Shearman
October 27, 2015 |
Learn Liberty: First, when did you join the Learn Liberty team and what is your role? Sloane Shearman: I came to work at Learn Liberty shortly after I graduated, in September 2013. As part of the Digital Strategy team, I work closely with Learn Liberty producers throughout the video creation process to help us reach […]
Is Offensive Speech Good for Society?
October 27, 2015 |
Is there any speech you think should be restricted? Should we have laws to protect people from being offended? Let us know what you think in the comments.
Deficit Day
October 27, 2015 |
What happens when the government spends all of the tax revenue it collects? In 2013, the U.S. budget deficit was $680 billion dollars! Who eventually pays for this difference in tax revenue and government spending? Professor of Economics at Duquesne University Antony Davies explains in the following video on the worst fiscal milestone of every […]
Quote of the Day
October 27, 2015 |
Alexis de Tocqueville on the paradox of freedom. Freedom comes with risk but the risk is well worth the reward of owning yourself. What do you think about this quote? Tell us how you feel in the comments.
Featured On Demand Program of the Week: Free Speech
October 26, 2015 |
Learn Liberty On Demand offers you a series of videos on new and exciting topics in the world of policy and ideas that you can watch any time, anywhere, on your schedule. Have you ever wondered if Free Speech has its limits? Well, this is the place for you. You’ve got freedom of speech, but […]
The War on Drugs: Seen vs. the Unseen
October 26, 2015 | Angela Dills
We have lived in Providence, RI for almost four years. I still am not accustomed to the driving habits of Rhode Islanders. There are the ones I might have expected moving up here from Georgia: the honk when the light turns green but I don’t move fast enough, the infrequent use of turn signals when […]
Learn Liberty’s New On Demand Program: Liberty 101
October 23, 2015 |
Pro civil society, pro individualism, pro market process, pro rule of law, pro limited government, pro peace, pro skepticism of power, pro spontaneous order, pro toleration, and pro liberty. These are the 10 fundamental principles of a free and prosperous society that will be explored in Learn Liberty’s new On Demand program, “Liberty 101”. Led […]
Leave Maternity Leave Alone!
October 23, 2015 |
Washington D.C. council members introduced legislation that would provide 16 weeks of paid parental leave to almost all employees in the District — paid for by a new tax on private D.C. employers. The proposal has been greeted positively by the media, which frequently point out that the U.S. is one of the only countries […]
Discussion Question: Safety Nets
October 23, 2015 |
Can you support any type of social safety net and still be considered a libertarian? Do individuals born with severe disabilities deserve assistance beyond what they or their families can pay for? How will those services be provided reliably if not by government means? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
Liberty Trivia Time
October 22, 2015 |
Did you know that American anarchist, abolitionist, and lawyer Lysander Spooner started the American Letter Mail Company in 1844? It succeeded in delivering mail for lower prices, but the U.S. Government challenged Spooner with legal measures, eventually forcing him to cease operations in 1851.
The Future Day that Wasn't
October 21, 2015 |
The date of October 21, 2015 has been etched in the back of many minds for the better half of a generation. Today is the day that Marty McFly traveled to the future with Doc Brown in the Back to the Future sequel. On that date, Marty arrived in a world of automated diners, hoverboards, […]
When Government Fails—Venezuela Edition
October 21, 2015 |
The following blog post by Abigail Hall appeared on the Independent Institute’s blog on September 3rd, 2015. Below is an excerpt. Some people look at the conditions in Venezuela and point to oil prices as the source of many of its problems. The Venezuelan government, led by President Nicolás Maduro, blames opposition leaders for the […]
The Creative Destruction of Nudity in Playboy Magazine
October 21, 2015 |
This post by Sarah Skwire originally appeared on the Foundation for Economic Education on October 14th, 2015. Below is an excerpt. The disappearance of full nudity from Playboy magazine is, in other words, a perfect example of Schumpeter’s concept of creative destruction. Schumpeter wrote that the “essential fact about capitalism” is creative destruction — the […]
Drug Policy Alliance Internship Opportunity in the Berkeley, CA Area!
October 21, 2015 |
The Drug Policy Alliance is seeking a Public Policy Intern and they want you! If you’re interested in a career in public policy then this internship may be perfect for you. Check out the details and consider applying. Internship Description The Office of Legal Affairs is looking for graduate public policy students who are interested […]
Quote of the Day
October 20, 2015 |
This quote comes from Henry David Thoreau’s Civil Disobedience where he gives an impassioned defense of the right to say no to unjust government dictates. What do you think? Should free people resist unjust government laws at the risk of imprisonment? Let us know what you think in the comments.
V for Venezuela
October 20, 2015 |
Venezuela’s condition continues to deteriorate, with opposition leaders imprisoned and elections allegedly rigged, the situation looks like it will not change anytime soon. This brings up the question, when are societies justified to rise up in a violent manner against government? Check out this short Learn Liberty video and let us know what you think […]
New Whistleblower Reveals "The Drone Papers," Detailing Pres. Obama's Covert Drone War
October 19, 2015 |
A “Second Snowden” leaked a cache of secret documents that has put the CIA’s and United States military’s use of unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) back into the spotlight. Drones have been used post-9/11 to carry out lethal strikes on those deemed enemies of the United States – even if the strikes take place outside of […]
Featured On Demand Program of the Week: The Philosophy of Liberty
October 19, 2015 |
Learn Liberty On Demand offers you a series of videos on new and exciting topics in the world of policy and ideas that you can watch any time, anywhere, on your schedule. Have you ever wondered what you do or do not have a right too? If so, this is the place for you. All […]
Bureaucratic vs. Business Management in Health Care
October 19, 2015 | Art Carden
The health care debate has been long on hysterics and short on useful analysis. Incendiary and counterproductive rhetoric about socialism, Nazis, and death panels from some corners notwithstanding, critics of socialized medicine raise an important question with uncomfortable answers: in the absence of profits, losses, and prices, how will decisions about the production and allocation […]
Economic Freedom: A Humanitarian Case
October 16, 2015 | Antony Davies
Without economic freedom, we cannot exercise our other freedoms. The freedom to speak is meaningless if the government prevents us from traveling from our homes or paying for a phone call. The freedom to write is meaningless if the government prevents us from selling newspapers. The freedom to worship is meaningless if the government forces […]