“Earlier this year, the Palisade and Eaton wildfires near Los Angeles were fought by an army of over 4,000 California state firefighters, alongside thousands of other support personnel. Within that number were more than 780 inmates from state prisons enrolled in the state’s ‘fire camp’ program, which has been operational since World War II. This program provides essential assistance to frontline wildfire containment efforts, as well as providing valuable training to inmates looking for skills — including first aid — they can use to help find work after finishing their sentences. But those released from California prisons would, for many years, run into one of several brick walls. Some couldn’t be hired as a firefighter at municipal-level firehouses because of their prison records. Others might have qualified for firefighter certification but couldn’t obtain an EMT license, a requirement for many firefighter jobs.” (12/03/25)
“Republicans dodged a bullet on Tuesday night as GOP candidate Matt Van Epps defeated far left progressive Democrat Aftyn Behn by a mere nine points in a district Donald Trump won by 22 points a year ago. But make no mistake: The socialist electoral gun is still locked, loaded and aimed at middle America. A win is a win, but Van Epps’[s] relatively narrow margin of victory will set off alarm bells for Republicans nationally, and embolden the socialist wing of the Democratic Party, which is already fast on its way to establishing its dominance. This election is also a validation for all those folks in the Volunteer State with T-shirts and bumper stickers that say ‘Don’t California my Tennessee,’ …” [editor’s note: I voted for Jon Thorp, the only real pro-liberty candidate, and I’m glad we dodged at least one deadly bullet – SAT] (12/03/25)
Source: Ludwig von Mises Institute
by Stephen Anderson
“December 31, 2025, concludes the first twenty-five years of the 21st century. The US government’s future bankruptcy results from poor personnel, policy, and money decisions that have impacted everyday people. Looking back from 2000 to 2025 showed a numbing expansion of federal government and Federal Reserve Bank power, economic intervention, regulation, and waste. Personal and economic freedoms have declined. The United States federal government debt at the end of fiscal year (FY) 2000 was $5.67 trillion. It doubled to $11.91 trillion at the end of FY 2009. This doubled again to $26.95 trillion at the end of FY 2020. It stood at $33.51 trillion at the end of FY 2024 and it approaches $37.6 trillion at the end of FY 2025.” (12/03/25)
“The Trump Administration is at war … with Senator Rand Paul. Tensions between the President and Senator Paul have heated up noticeably since mid-October, with Trump taking sharp public swipes at Paul, a longtime ally. This scuffle seems primarily driven by Paul’s outspoken criticism of the Venezuelan boat strikes, which Trump sees as a betrayal of his ‘tough on drugs’ agenda and a threat to GOP unity. The budget hawk angle — mentioned here in a weekend update — is a secondary irritant, tied to Paul’s broader push for fiscal restraint. But it hasn’t dominated the feud.” (12/03/25)
“California progressives are pushing a wealth tax that would skim 5 percent of the assets of billionaires to cover the state government’s fiscal gap. That is, it would hit billionaires to start—there’s no telling who would come to be regarded as wealthy enough to be fleeced as the state’s spending likely continues to outstrip its revenues. But before Californians proceed down the path of chasing high earners out of the state, they should consider the example of Swiss voters, who just rejected a billionaire tax of their own.” (12/03/25)
“There are, of course, two components to affordability: sellers’ prices and buyers’ incomes. For most American families, buying (or renting) focuses either heavily or entirely on life’s essentials: housing, food, transportation, education, health care, and other forms of care (child, senior). That a clear majority of American families are, at minimum, stressed by these costs is a consequence of not just a host of factors on the sellers’ side, but of one big factor on the buyers’ side: a half-century of wage stagnation, even as investment income has soared. Or, if you prefer, a half-century of buyers’ income stagnation, even as sellers’ income has soared. If you depend on investments for most of your income, this is a pretty damn good time.” (12/03/25)
“Kids say the darndest things — and ask the darndest questions. Especially when they were 8-12 years old, my kids would often bring up sensitive topics at dinner. Sexy topics. Disgusting topics. Sexy, disgusting topics. Though I was proud of their unconventional curiosity, I didn’t want to ruin dinner for the whole family. Before long, I came up with a simple response to defuse such situations: ‘Ask me again after dinner.’ A response that simultaneously expresses two distinct positions: First, it’s a fine question to ask, and I’m happy to discuss it with you in detail before bedtime. Second, it’s a bad question to ask right now, so let’s change the subject so everyone has a nice dinner.” (12/03/25)
“The people of Honduras had not yet made up their minds. So, Donald Trump intervened to help them. … The time has long passed for the U.S. to stop engaging in colonial-style interference in the elections of Latin American countries and to stop ‘defending democracy’ when our candidate wins and subverting it when our candidate loses.” (12/03/25)
Source: David Friedman’s Substack
by David Friedman
“Week before last I was up for jury duty, instructed to check a web page twice a day to see if they wanted me to come in. The first two days they did not, the third day they did. I was told to come to the south county courthouse by nine in the morning; so were more than eighty other people. … What most struck me, as an economist, about the process was the implication of its having access to nearly free labor — there was no payment for the first day, fifteen dollars a day thereafter.” (12/02/25)
“Few Americans lie awake at night worrying about the federal debt — so the Republicans’ plan to end ‘temporary’ COVID-era Obamacare subsidies due to their exorbitant cost won’t win them votes. It will save Uncle Sam money: A staggering 93% of Obamacare premiums are now paid directly by the federal government to health-insurance companies. But will that bring victory in the coming midterm elections? No. That’s why Democrats are gloating that reducing the subsidies will mean higher costs for enrollees, and increase the number of Americans who go without insurance. Because of it, Republicans ‘are going to get their clocks cleaned’ in November, Sen. Chris Murphy (D- Conn.) predicts. Democrats cynically insist on continuing to spend huge sums of taxpayers’ money — $450 billion over the next 10 years — to prop up lousy insurance, defending the indefensible because of its Obamacare label. Even though Obamacare is an utter failure.” (12/02/25)
