Socialism: Crushing Industry and Spirit Worldwide!

From an editorial in the Wall Street Journal:

The values that might impact dynamism are of special interest here. Relatively few in the Big Three report that they want:

• jobs offering opportunities for achievement (42% in France and 54% in Italy, versus an average of 73% in Canada and the U.S.);
  
• chances for initiative in the job (38% in France and 47% in Italy, as against an average of 53% in Canada and the U.S.),
  
• and even interesting work (59% in France and Italy, versus an average of 71.5% in Canada and the U.K).
  
• Relatively few are keen on taking responsibility, or freedom (57% in Germany and 58% in France as against 61% in the U.S. and 65% in Canada)....

How depressing is that?

The Polidore Curve

Inspired by my co-author, this is the Polidore curve:
Here is Tim's satirical version:

G-7 Officials Recommend Vigilance on Hedge Funds

Of course they do!

Given the strong growth of the hedge fund industry and the instruments they trade, we [governments] need to be vigilant.

I love how these jet-setting socialists worry more about economic growth than Islamic terrorism. What exactly do they fear from hedge funds? Hedge funds make markets more efficient and rational. In the United States, we don't need market regulations like price caps and trading halts because our sell-side traders are able to detect and profit from irrational market changes. Asian and European markets are far less efficient because of their costs and regulation. But it's the hedge funds that we should fear.

Some other G7 concerns:

• Dwindline energy supplies
• Not in China where they're building thousands of coal power plants.
• Also, get used to dwindling energy supplies: the greens won't let us build nuclear power plants or burn fossil fuels, aka the substances that have saved more lives than any other in human experience.
• Foreign exchange fluctuations
• These just expose the failure of statist economic policies. Time to have a fixed FX rate and maybe some tariffs or a wall too.

Just another anti-globalism globalist club.

Milton Friedman on Legalizing Drugs

I've always been an advocate of legalizing drugs, since I think enforcement and black market activities cause more problems than the drugs themselves. Friedman does a better job stating a similar opinion:

Milton Friedman on Limited Government

The best argument I've ever heard for limited government.