“‘A monarchy, or a corrupt tyrannical aristocracy.’ That, George Mason warned, is what the Constitution would produce. His objections to ratification became the foundation for some of the most influential Anti-Federalist arguments. Born 300 years ago today, December 11, 1725, Mason was one of the most influential political thinkers and leaders of the American Revolution. It would be hard to exaggerate the impact of his Virginia Declaration of Rights, which served as the foundation for the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights – and other constitutional documents around the world. But today, on the 300th anniversary of his birth, we are exploring his forgotten warnings about the Constitution during the ratification debates. They focus almost completely on his core fear that the new system would centralize power in a national government and destroy liberty.” (12/11/25)
“Any book that intends to provide a complete account of a chapter covering almost 70 years in the history of ideas is an ambitious achievement by itself, especially when it is centered around a fuzzy concept like neoliberalism. If such a book also attempts to cover decades of economic history, discussing the evolution of policymaking and the intellectual and political debates that shaped it, one would probably worry that the author is trying to accomplish too much. Now, add that the author will try to do so while navigating murky waters, surrounded by the history of a violent dictatorship and the overall context of Latin American politics of the Cold War era. It seems like a recipe for failure. Yet, to the great benefit of his readers, Sebástian Edwards accomplishes all this brilliantly. The Chile Project: The Story of the Chicago Boys and the Downfall of Neoliberalism is nothing short of a monumental achievement.” (12/11/25)
“On December 5, 1886, on a windswept homestead near De Smet in Dakota Territory, Rose Wilder Lane entered a world of adversity. She was the only surviving child of Laura Ingalls and Almanzo Wilder. Within a few short years her family’s cabin burned, her parents were stricken with diphtheria, her father suffered a crippling stroke, and severe winters forced them to leave the prairie. Those early calamities impressed on Lane two lessons that would define her life: that individual fortitude matters more than fate, and that no external authority can substitute for self‑discipline. … By age sixteen she was supporting herself as a Western Union operator, moving from town to town and reading voraciously after her night shifts. The hardships of her youth fostered a fierce independence that would blossom into a philosophy.” (12/11/25)
“The strange new alliance between democratic socialists and nationalist populists isn’t a sign of political healing. It’s a sign that people have lost their grip on basic economics.” (12/11/25)
“Again and again, Trump administration goons have insisted that they are deporting only the ‘worst of the worst … rapists, savages, monsters.’ They have even — and this is one of the most vile aspects of this government — encouraged their base to revel in the misery of their victims by releasing videos lovingly dwelling on images of people being bound and frog-marched toward the planes. The videos are titled ‘ASMR: Illegal Alien Deportation Flight.’ If their intended audience experienced a tingle of pleasure, they might want to fact check the administration’s claims. A Cato Institute report based on leaked ICE information showed that 73 percent of deportees had no criminal convictions and only 5 percent had a conviction for a violent crime.” (12/11/25)
“As the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence nears, President Donald Trump’s escalating attacks on immigrants of color has made his administration the most globally racist, hostile administration for non-white immigrants in US history, on top of its aggressively implemented racist policies in the US and around the world. In the past two weeks alone, we’ve witnessed Trump’s racist rants against the Somali community in Minnesota, the freezing of all non-white asylum bids, and denial of citizenship rights for long-time legal immigrants from non-white majority nations. These come on top of the increasingly violent assaults and deportations of mostly brown and Black people, including citizens, solely based on skin color, language, and where they work. The November 26 shooting, one fatally, of two National Guard members in Washington was the pretext for the latest intensification of Trump’s anti-non-white immigrant crusade.” (12/11/25)
“Recently I published an overview of Eric Hoffer’s book, The True Believer. I had read the book twice before but only remembered the rough details of the book, namely that it as a study of the totalitarian mindset and the psychology of the people who are attracted to totalitarian mass movements. Given the current state of the world, the United States in particular, I wondered if MAGA was a mass movement. I also wondered about the divide in the libertarian/Objectivist world between Trump supporters and Trump opponents. Both sides observed the same facts, but each took an opposing view. Trump supporters see him as the Great Emancipator following in the footsteps of Abraham Lincoln. Trump opponents see him as a clear threat to liberty bent on imposing a dictatorship in the United States. If the facts are there, why the great divide? And why the fervor over the issue?” (12/10/25)
Source: Ludwig von Mises Institute
by David Brady, Jr.
“Today, some fans of our current administration will brow beat those with concerns over foreign policy and aid, accusing you of not being sufficiently focused on domestic issues. In a perfect world, one could stay focused on affordability (or immigration, as these brow beaters typically focus on) and other kitchen table issues. But the issue of war and peace touches every aspect of American life whether one wants to admit it or not. You should not allow gatekeepers, who selectively brow beat over foreign policy as a focus, to prevent you from caring about foreign policy.” (12/10/25)
“The Justice Department recently established a ‘Second Amendment Section’ within its Civil Rights Division. On its face, that move is a welcome development for defenders of the constitutional right to armed self-defense — an impression reinforced by the alarm the new initiative has generated among gun control advocates. But the section’s mission statement raises doubts about its commitment to Second Amendment advocacy. So does the Justice Department’s (DOJ) ongoing defense of constitutionally dubious federal gun laws.” (12/10/25)
