“here was a time when debates about determinism and free will belonged to philosophy departments and late-night dorm room conversations. They were enjoyable precisely because they seemed harmless. Whatever the answer, life went on. Courts judged, doctors decided, teachers taught, and politicians were still — at least nominally — held responsible for their actions. That era is over. Artificial intelligence has transformed what once appeared to be an abstract philosophical question into a concrete issue of governance, power, and accountability. Determinism is no longer merely a theory about how the universe works. It is becoming an operating principle for modern institutions. And that changes everything.” (12/25/25)
“The Christmas season is a time to reflect on what we have, which includes the kind of society that has made countless blessings possible. The warmth, security, and generosity that many Americans experience during the holidays are not accidents or pure gifts of nature. In their tangible sense, they are the products of a long and extraordinary period of economic growth — one that has expanded opportunity, reduced hardship, and given moral ideals room to breathe. History shows quite clearly that the societies most capable of generosity and liberalism are not those trapped in poverty but those that have escaped it. An abundance of wealth does not corrupt moral life; it enables it. Economic growth is not a rival to our highest values. It’s a precondition to their most vigorous pursuit.” (12/25/25)
“Nearly four years of war has profoundly transformed Russia. Fostered by state propaganda, many ordinary Russians have developed a sense of pride that Russia has survived in the face of Western hostility. This feeling has been fed by Western expressions of contempt toward the Russian people and Russian culture — insults that are assiduously quoted by the state-controlled Russian media.The Russian public struggles to see how the situation can be viewed from the other side and acknowledge that Western concerns may have grounds behind them; for example, the Kremlin’s attempts at meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential elections better explain the negative attitudes toward Russia in Washington, rather than pre-existing cultural prejudices. … Even though it was Russia that invaded Ukraine and that continues to attack the formerly ‘brotherly nation,’ many in Russia view the war as defensive in nature and inevitable.” (12/24/25)
“He’s easily triggered. He speaks on impulse. But where are the triggers? What are the impulses? Do the warps and perversions of Trump’s crude patois erupt from his subconscious? Or has Trump’s subconscious completely floated to the surface now and we are hearing directly from the fractured idiom of his Id? … Trump isn’t speaking in code so much as he is connecting at an instinctual level to a network of cultural affinities, prejudices and insecurities that exist beyond grammar and etymology and without which Trump and his followers would be lost. … Here then is a sampler of some of Trump’s most perplexing pronouncements over the last year. Good luck mining the meaning from the madness.” (12/25/25)
“We conserve capital, tend embers, make plans, and orient ourselves toward the future. Prosperity demands we tend the embers, rather than curse the cold.” (12/25/25)
“The year is 2029. President Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, having spent years raging against Fox News as a propaganda organ whose very operation is illegal, has found a pressure point to control it. She enables its sale to owners who are friends of hers, and whose business depends on regulatory favors she has made a practice of doling out to allies. As the new editor in chief of Fox News, the owners install Tim Miller, a skeptic of conservatism who has never previously worked in television news. But then AOC complains that her friends at Fox News aren’t moving fast enough, and the network is still running critical coverage of her. Days later, Miller kills a long-scheduled report showing how AOC may have flouted the Constitution in order to have people tortured. It is safe to say, I think, that conservatives would be upset. … And they would be right.” (12/24/25)
“Merry Christmas! This is the traditional ‘Peace on earth; Good will to men’ season. It’s hard to keep this spirit alive even in the best situations. It’s nearly impossible with government around. Government doesn’t thrive on peace, but on conflict. War is the health of the state, after all. Where there isn’t conflict, government creates it. Where there is already conflict, government fans the flames and uses it against you and your liberty. This is true both overseas and within America’s increasingly militarized borders. You can’t show good will to others while governing them.” (12/24/25)
“It is increasingly apparent that the new political leaders in both Taiwan and Japan are adopting more assertive, even explicitly confrontational, policies toward the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Their moves are stoking geostrategic tensions throughout the western Pacific. Washington has long regarded Taipei and Tokyo as important U.S. strategic partners. However, the Trump administration also wants to discourage any new military crises in the region. Achieving such a balance may prove to be challenging.” (12/24/25)
“Recall the firing of the commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics by the president this summer when a labor report did not shine a favorable light on the job market. Then the Environmental Protection Agency stopped collecting data in the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program. Now, even economic reports are being cancelled. … Anytime data and statistics are ignored or compromised, the underpinnings of a well-functioning society are at risk of manipulation. Statistics permit the condition of a society to be measured, providing transparency and the ability to draw conclusions. If an activity is not measured, then it is difficult to assess its strengths and limitations. Without statistics, unlawful activities can be hidden and obfuscated. ” (12/24/25)
Source: Ludwig von Mises Institute
by William L Anderson
“Our plane landed at JFK at 10:30 p.m. after a nine-hour flight from Istanbul. … While in line, I had given my fanny pack to my wife, as it held our money and credit cards, and she handed it back to me as we were leaving the building. Instead of snapping it around my waist, I held it in my hand, placing my passport back into the pack. Because of my having to wait for two hours, the last shuttle to our motel had already gone, which meant we had to catch a taxi. … As I began to check into the motel, I realized I didn’t have my pack with me. After checking to see if I had dropped it on the ground, it hit me that it was on the floor of the cab, which was long gone.” (12/24/25)
