Source: Garrison Center
by Thomas L Knapp

“Florida home values have increased by about 150% since 2008, and that there now about 2 million more homes in Florida than there were in 2008. In other words, a lot more homeowners are paying a lot more in property taxes than used to be the case. In the meantime, average wages have only increased by about 35%, while inflation has driven up the prices of things Floridians buy by 75%. Which means those increased tax bills have become less affordable, even as county government budgets have continued to grow at or faster than the inflation rate. The state government has run budget surpluses since 2010. It seems to me that SOME kind of correction is in order. Government keeps taking, and spending, more of our money, but our earnings aren’t keeping up with either that government growth or the cost of living.” (06/02/26)

https://thegarrisoncenter.org/archives/20639

Source: The Daily Economy
by Romina Boccia

“A Congress that routinely misses budget deadlines and adds to an unsustainable debt burden should not expect automatic raises with no accountability.” (06/02/26)

https://thedailyeconomy.org/article/if-congress-wants-a-raise-it-should-do-its-job/

Source: Washington Post
by Ramesh Ponnuru

“Some conflicts among the states are inevitable and perhaps even healthy in our system. But rules must restrain those conflicts so that they do not undermine important national goods such as freedom of commerce among the states. … The Constitution therefore includes several restrictions on what states can do to one another and a commerce clause that hands regulatory power to Congress. For almost all of America’s history, the Supreme Court has inferred from that clause that state governments can’t regulate interstate economic activity … But the justices have, unfortunately, grown less and less willing to enforce those limits on the states.” (06/02/26)

https://archive.is/PF9SU

Source: Independent Institute
by Alexander William Salter

“There is a tension at the heart of political economy. Is it the science of statesmanship, by which rulers manage taxation, commerce, public finance, and national prosperity? Or is it the science of self-government, meaning the study of how free people coordinate their affairs without constant management from above? These conceptions appear to conflict. Statesmanship implies centralized judgment. Self-government implies decentralized judgment. One vision emphasizes what governments do for societies, while the other emphasizes what societies can do for themselves.” (06/02/26)

https://www.independent.org/article/2026/06/02/statesmanship-and-the-classical-liberal-order/

Source: Christian Science Monitor
by staff

“More than any other region, Asia has felt the knock-on effects of the Iran war in energy supplies. Before the conflict began in February, some 80% of the oil shipped through the Strait of Hormuz went to Asian buyers. In recent weeks, as those supplies have dwindled, the region has endured blackouts, fuel rationing, and dozens of protests, from South Korea to the Philippines to India. The expectation was that each country would turn inward to protect petroleum supplies. Not so. With a population of more than half of humanity, Asia has shown a great deal of humanity in tackling the crisis together. ‘Now that they are hostage to events thousands of miles away,’ reported The Economist, ‘the squabbles that frequently break out between Asian neighbours no longer look quite such a threat.'” (06/01/26)

https://www.csmonitor.com/Editorials/the-monitors-view/2026/0601/The-Iran-war-sparks-partnership-in-Asia