Acton Institute Powerblog Archives

Post Tagged 'economics'

July 19, 2008

Right Online Austin: Global warming

While former Vice President Al Gore mesmerized activists at Netroots Nation this morning with a surprise visit to Austin, Texas, a different kind of conversation about global warming was taking place at the Right Online conference in the same city. Continue Reading...
April 24, 2008

Returning to the real economy

In the April 24 edition of the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano, Ettore Gotti Tedeschi focuses on the origins and lessons of the global financial crisis. In a previous article, Gotti Tedeschi argued that the downturn is an opportunity for Italy to reform its economy and cut down on unnecessary public spending. Continue Reading...
April 22, 2008

Recycled laziness

I know there are some economic arguments against recycling, at least some forms of it. Many of these seem to be based on the fact that there’s no real profit margin, so proponents have to either engage the coercive power of government to get people to recycle (by charging them a fee or by offering city services) or people have to simply donate their recycle-ables gratis. Continue Reading...
March 18, 2008

Bashing globalization in the name of European ‘values’

Hostility towards globalization is not the exclusive territory of the left in Italy. Giulio Tremonti, a former minister of the economy in Silvio Berlusconi’s centre-right government, has written a book called Fear and Hope (La Paura e la Speranza), largely arguing against free trade and the opening of international markets. Continue Reading...
March 07, 2008

Who said it?

Surely these are the words of a disciple of Hayek or Friedman, right? Under the guise of protecting us from ourselves, the right and the left are becoming ever more aggressive in regulating behavior… …The real question for policy makers is how to protect those worthy borrowers who are struggling, without throwing out a system that works fine for the majority of its users (all of whom have freely chosen to use it). Continue Reading...
March 05, 2008

Solovyov on economic morality

Vladimir Solovyov Towards the end of his life, the 19th century Russian philosopher Vladimir Solovyov published his “On the Justification of the Good: An Essay on Moral Philosophy” (1897). In this book, wrote historian Paul Valliere, Solovyov abandonded his vision of a “worldwide theocratic order” in favor of the more concrete demands of building a just society. Continue Reading...
February 27, 2008

Solid economics at L’Osservatore Romano

Good news is not always so hard to find. Case in point: Free-market economics is making a comeback at the Vatican’s daily newspaper L’Osservatore Romano. Previously known as a dry read, L’Osservatore Romano (which means The Roman Observer in English) now contains provocative interviews and real news stories from around the world. Continue Reading...
February 07, 2008

Economists are people too

In any period of economic transition there are upheavals at various levels, and winners and losers (at least in the short term). We live in just such an age today in North America, as we move from an industrial to a post-industrial information and service economy, from isolationism to increased globalization. Continue Reading...
January 31, 2008

Ethical employment

What do you look for when you are searching for a job? A growth industry? A healthy bottom-line? A positive corporate culture? Some combination of the above? Fortune magazine recently rated the “Top 100 Places to Work.” Continue Reading...