What Is in Your Wallet? Not Very Much.

Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by Angelo Monaco

“The classic virtue of thrift — once celebrated as a moral cornerstone of self-reliance, discipline, and stewardship — has largely been cast aside by a modern economic system designed to punish it. For centuries, saving was viewed as a quiet duty to one’s family and future, a practice that paired material restraint with ethical responsibility. Today, however, our financial architecture actively undermines this morality. Persistent inflation erodes the purchasing power of uninvested savings, while hyper-financialization and record-low interest rates reduce traditional thrift to a losing strategy. In a culture driven by immediate gratification and an economic engine fueled by perpetual consumer debt, the deliberate act of saving is no longer a protected path to security, but rather a virtue systematically penalized by the very system that once relied on it.” (08/06/26)

https://www.fff.org/explore-freedom/article/what-is-in-your-wallet-not-very-much/

Fauci Contempt of Congress Can Be Challenged, but his Contempt for the Public is Undeniable

Source: Jonathan Turley
by Jonathan Turley

“‘Today I am the most famous and talked-about person in the country’. Those words from the diary of Dr. Anthony Fauci will certainly be true today as the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs moves forward with holding him in contempt for refusing to answer over a hundred questions about his past conduct and statements as the former head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. The contempt vote will start a process that is fraught with political and legal challenges. Even putting aside the objections to the direct referral from the Committee to the Justice Department (rather than submit the matter to a full Senate vote), there remain serious questions about whether Fauci can be held in contempt after invoking his right to remain silent under the Fifth Amendment.” (08/06/26)

https://jonathanturley.org/2026/08/06/the-sound-of-silence-dr-faucis-contempt-of-congress-can-be-challenged-but-his-contempt-for-the-public-cannot-be-denied/

Nigeria: President hails “largest ever” single-day rescue as 308 abductees freed

Source: ABC News

“At least 308 people abducted in different attacks in the northern part of Nigeria were rescued, the country’s president said Wednesday. Those rescued include 163 people abducted from Woro community in Kaiama area of Kwara state in February, and 145 people kidnapped mostly from Niger state, Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu said in a statement. Details of the operation that freed the more than 300 people who spent months in captivity were not disclosed, with the statement only saying they were rescued from a forest and are now receiving medical attention. … Armed groups, known as bandits in Nigeria, regularly carry out raids and kidnappings for ransom in the northwest and north-central parts of the country.” (08/06/26)

https://abcnews.com/International/wireStory/nigerian-president-hails-largest-single-day-rescue-308-135413965

War, Peace, and Free Trade

Source: Law & Liberty
by Edwin van de Haar

“Many classical liberals see themselves as myth busters. In particular, they take aim at those myths that erroneously link a big state and collectivist action with welfare and prosperity. No thinker is too prominent or a theory too grand to be undermined by proper and sound classical liberal analysis. And rightly so. Yet many classical liberals are blind to their own myth, which is the idea that trade or commerce fosters, or leads to, peace. Admittedly, they share this misconception with some of the great names in the wider liberal tradition, such as Mill, Cobden, Kant, and Montesquieu. Yet they were erroneous nonetheless.” (08/06/26)

https://lawliberty.org/book-review/war-peace-and-free-trade/

Will the CIA Assassinate Democratic Socialists?

Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by Jacob G Hornberger

“With the soaring popularity and electoral success of democratic socialists, the question naturally arises: Will the CIA employ its power of assassination to rectify this problem?” (08/06/26)

https://www.fff.org/2026/08/06/will-the-cia-assassinate-democratic-socialists/

Sanders’s answer when asked if he will endorse socialist Hong in Wisconsin sparks instant mockery

Source: Fox News

“Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., was asked if he would endorse Democratic Socialist of America (DSA) member Francesca Hong’s Wisconsin gubernatorial bid, and his response sparked immediate mockery on social media. ‘I don’t think so,’ the Vermont socialist told ‘Pod Save America’ host Jon Favreau when asked if he is going to endorse Hong’s campaign for governor. ‘I met Francesca a couple of years ago. I was in Wisconsin, and she seems very, very nice, but again this is a race I’m just not that familiar with.’ Sanders added that ‘we have not gotten involved in many governors’ races’ …. Political commentators quickly chimed in on social media suggesting that Sanders not endorsing Hong shows the senator doesn’t think she can win, with many pointing to Sanders’ strident support of Platner despite all of his political baggage.” (08/06/26)

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/sanders-answer-asked-endorse-socialist-hong-wisconsin-sparks-instant-mockery-says-lot

Human Flourishing and Marginal Utility

Source: EconLog
by Clifford A Bates Jr.

“The law of diminishing marginal utility is one of the foundational principles of economics, but its significance extends far beyond the marketplace. The principle states that as a person acquires additional units of a good, the satisfaction gained from each successive unit tends to decline. The first glass of water relieves intense thirst, the second provides comfort, and the third offers only modest enjoyment. While economists developed this concept to explain value and choice, it also reveals a deeper truth about human existence.” (08/06/26)

https://www.econlib.org/econlog/human-flourishing-and-marginal-utility

The Treasury Department isn’t a hedge fund

Source: Washington Post
by Matthew Lynn

“He was saving the bond market. Or laying the groundwork for a new currency system. Or rescuing a major bank from imminent collapse. The internet has plenty of wild theories about why Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent intervened in currency markets to prop up the value of the Japanese yen on Friday after it hit a 40-year low. Yet the real explanation is probably a lot simpler — and, unfortunately, a lot more worrying. … Bessent is a hedge fund guy. More specifically, he is a Soros Fund Management guy. He worked there through the Asian financial crisis of the late 1990s, and the firm’s bet against the British pound earned $1 billion a few years earlier. Big currency bets are what he does best. In effect, he is playing the currency market because, well, that is what you do.” (08/06/26)

https://archive.is/2Sah6