Acton Institute Powerblog Archives

Post Tagged 'technology'

The political implications of bitcoin

Prior to the publication of John Maynard Keynes’ The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money, balanced budgets reflected the received wisdom for governments. By making the case for debt spending in times of recession (and the virtually ignored case for restricting spending in times of growth), Keynes gave political leaders a license to abandon the requirement of balance. Continue Reading...

How markets link the world

Note: This is post #16 in a weekly video series on basic microeconomics. Ten years ago this week, Apple unveiled the iPhone. It’s a product that was designed in California and produced by thousands of people all over the world. Continue Reading...

The magic of the washing machine

What was the greatest invention of the industrial revolution? Hans Rosling makes the case for the washing machine. Rosling explains how the productivity gains of the washing machine—and similar labor-saving devices—lead to increases in education and economic growth in the developing world. Continue Reading...

Pope’s Encyclical: Eschew Air Conditioning?

I know why Victorian women fainted so much. They were too hot – literally. Wearing layers and layers of clothes, corseted to the point of not being able to breath, attempting to make merry in rooms draped and swathed and festooned with velvet furniture and bric-a-brac. Continue Reading...