The Return of Slavery

There are some plagues that mankind seems to be incapable of fully destroying. One of these plagues is slavery, which has existed since man moved from being a hunter-gatherer to agriculture. Slavery is the condition where an individual is deprived of much of the...

‘Forever Fed,’ but Why?

Everyone has heard of the Federal Reserve Bank or “The Fed” and that it has something to do with the value of our money — and so it must be very important. But few even claim to really understand what the Fed does and how it does it. This past week, The Economist...

What is not Known about the Economy

How much will the stock market rise this year? As an economist, I frequently get variations of that question. If I am honest and say “I have no idea,” the questioner most often walks away with a disappointed look. If I say something like “10.4 percent,” the questioner...

From a Whimper to Success

Three decades ago, the socialist/communist economies of Eastern Europe died, not with a bang as many had feared, but with a whimper. It was obvious that the economies of those countries were falling further and further behind their Western Europe counterparts — and...