Author: Thomas L. Knapp

Source: Ludwig von Mises Institute
by Joshua Mawhorter

“Many mistakenly assume that, on a free market, high barriers to entry and start-up costs so privilege the monopolistic incumbents that it would be virtually impossible for other firms to compete. In such an environment, competition is said to either be improbable or impossible, or—where competition could presumably exist—it is said to be inconvenient or duplicative. Hopefully the reader can see the question-begging in such claims and how the conclusion is presupposed against competition—there is either said to be no competition or there is said to be too much competition. Thus, the public goods argument for ‘public utilities’ and the myth of ‘natural monopoly’ combine to argue that the state ought to provide certain services to prevent market failure and monopoly.” (08/21/26)

https://mises.org/mises-wire/telephone-and-brief-episode-imperfect-competition-1894-1906

Source: Brownstone Institute
by Filipe Rafaeli

“iogenes was one of the most iconic philosophers of ancient Greece. He roamed the streets of Athens in broad daylight carrying a lit lantern. When asked why he was performing such an unusual scene, Diogenes would reply that he was looking for an honest man. He never found one. More than two thousand years later, Diogenes’ questioning remains just as valid and relevant as much of the teachings of the ancient Greek philosophers.” (08/21/26)

https://brownstone.org/articles/what-would-a-brutally-honest-man-look-like/

Source: The Price of Liberty
by Nathan Barton

“The most recent stupidity generated in Santa Fe is an attack on various satirical publications. Most notably, the Babylon Bee. As reported by the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), New Mexico has joined two other States in requiring warnings on all AI-generated political content, and on prohibiting such content within a certain window of time before elections. (We are unsure and were not able to confirm which two States are similar, but suspect it is California and Hawai’i. Although other source suggest it is Texas and Colorado.) But what we did discover is that the problem is far more than just three States.” (08/21/26)

https://thepriceofliberty.org/2026/08/21/new-mexico-whats-free-speech-worth/

Source: Liberal Currents
by Alan Elrod

“Harp’s letters are intimate, obsessive, tinged with romance and a slavish devotion to the man currently laying waste to the American republic. They are the sign of someone who, if not in love, is undeniably taken with Trump in a way that goes beyond even the intensities of schoolgirl adoration. As one commenter put it, her writing is ‘not a love letter, it’s a cult devotional.’ The love question, at least in its physical dimension, strikes me as a superficial concern anyway. I agree with commentators like Jonathan V. Last that this is almost certainly not a sexual relationship. I have argued previously that the psychosexual unmooring of the American right is a central part of our descent into authoritarianism. The obsession with Trump himself has often veered into a set of lurid, fantastical projections.” (08/22/26)

https://www.liberalcurrents.com/natalie-harp-and-the-american-don-juan/

Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by George Leef

“When Jimmy Carter ran for president in 1976, he received support from the teachers’ unions, and to pay them back, he pushed for the Department of Education as a means to help the unions solidify their control and squeeze out more money than they could get just from states and localities. There was no public demand for federal meddling in education — this was pure, special-interest politics. … When Alexis de Tocqueville visited the United States in 1830, he noted in his famous book Democracy in America that the level of literacy here was amazingly high, without any government involvement. How, then, did what we call ‘public education’ get started?” (08/21/26)

https://www.fff.org/explore-freedom/article/abolish-the-department-of-education-yes-but-dont-stop-there/