Well, this for a start.
(via David Fleck)
Political Philosophy
The Nature of Dictatorships
It seems like there are a lot of people these days who justify–or at least make excuses for–dictatorships. “Well, it’s true there are some things you can’t do,” goes one typical line. “But if you steer clear of politics, you’ll be just fine.” Dictatorships are justified based on many purported benefits, including suppression of internal violence, enabling economic development, and above all “stability.”
Mario Vargas Llosa talks about what dictatorship really is and what it does to people.
Related: Ralph Peters takes on the “stability is always good” argument. I have related thoughts here.
Vargas Llosa link via Neptunus Lex.
The Road to Serfdom in Cartoons
Via the Ludwig von Mises Institute comes a quite good cartoon version of Hayek’s classic.
Here’s a sample image:
Quote of the Day
Reductio ad absurdum done right.
The Upside of Income Inequality
By Gary S. Becker and Kevin M. Murphy
From the May/June 2007 Issue of American.com
For many, the solution to an increase in inequality is to make the tax structure more progressive—raise taxes on high-income households and reduce taxes on low-income households. While this may sound sensible, it is not. Would these same indi Âviduals advocate a tax on going to college and a subsidy for dropping out of high school in response to the increased importance of education? We think not. Yet shifting the tax structure has exactly this effect.