There's a notion that war is good for an economy, and that since we're headed into one — of what type is yet to be determined — increased spending will be good for the economy and we'll pull out of our economic slide. This mind set is partly informed by the belief that World War 2 pulled us out of the depression. It did, but it's not that simple.
Amazingly, the head of the Taliban government said the U.S. didn't have the guts to attack his country. First, we aren't going to attack his country — we're going to attack terrorists in his country.
Those who believe that government should be in charge of, and regulate, almost everything we do seem to have taken the September 11 terrorist attacks on our nation and their aftermath as an affirmation that they're right.
Great, now we can add Sweden to the list of countries that are smarter than we are about social security.
As we look for ways to increase security against terrorism – especially in the light of the use of airplanes as terrorist weapons – one common-sense solution seems to be to train and allow pilots to carry weapons. That, along with making the cockpit less vulnerable, would be a step in the right direction.
Just when I thought I knew everything (cue in the laughter) the NCPA's Bruce Bartlett surprises me with a new and timely piece of information.
Now that we have some distance from the terrorist attacks, it's interesting to see our responses to them. Out of the hours of broadcasting and reams of print, three stand out for me.
Remember the first time you peered into a kaleidoscope? With a slight rotation one colorful geometric pattern vanished and unexpectedly became a dramatically different one. The events of Sept. 11 turned America's kaleidoscope, and the grim new pattern that appeared will indelibly change public policy.
The fashionable energy for years has been renewable energy: wind, solar and so forth. The media have been fascinated by them. Taxpayers have subsidized billions in research. Trouble is, they provide less than five percent of U.S. energy supplies.
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to review the Cleveland school choice system, setting the stage for what could be a groundbreaking decision on the constitutionality of all programs – including programs in Milwaukee and Florida – that help parents of children trapped in failing schools choose another school, even if it happens to have a religious founding.
Here is a simple suggestion. Cut significantly or eliminate all together the capital gains tax now. This was a good idea before the events of September 11, and it is an even better idea now that the markets have fallen daily since re-opening.
A big worry of recent years is the falling U.S. savings rate – it's actually gone negative. A new study by Stephen Entin of the Institute For Research on the Economics of Taxation nails the culprit: the tax code.
I came across a statistic that shows the world has finally changed. As of last year, more than half of U.S. households had at least one computer. Not that there was any suspense about it, but computers are now officially no big deal. In fact, they're just part of the furniture. Life has officially changed.
The group physicians for a national health program and others advocating a single-payer health care system to improve quality and access to care say it would lessen physician frustration and make patients' lives better. But a new NCPA study shows they're exactly wrong.
A new study by researcher Terry Moe, reported in the publication education matters, confirms what I've long argued about school choice: the appeal for parents of sending their children to private schools is greatest among low-income families, minorities and those living in low-performing districts.
It was a presidential election filled with drama and bitter partisanship, whose dead heat ending was broken only after a long struggle. And it's not the one you're thinking of. It was the election of 1800.
The terrorists obviously don't understand what makes our economic system work. Capitalism is not a few people or even a large building full of financiers. Capitalism is ordinary people doing their jobs; consumers, investors, businessmen and women, all investing in America.
To avoid such catastrophes in the future, the CIA is going to have to get down and dirty in the intelligence business. Congressional criticism of the agency over the years apparently has turned it into too nice an organization to prevent attacks like Tuesday's.
One of the more disingenuous claims is coming these days from Washington Democrats who blame the falling budget surplus on the Bush tax cuts. But the villain is the slowing economy, not the tax cuts.
If there's one issue the NCPA has been associated with, it's medical savings accounts. In 1996, congress authorized a limited demonstration project for MSAs. Now, it's time to take the lid off and give them a chance.
President Bush wants to fix the doomed social security system, but the senate once tried to save him the trouble.
The U.S. Census Bureau has published its 2000 supplementary survey. The results? Relentless pursuit of the American Dream.
The U.S. Civil Rights Commission report on Florida voting irregularities engages in unbelievable demagoguery. Dissenting members have shown it's intellectually sloppy and politically biased.
Is it time to admit foreign aid often does more harm than good?
P.J. O'rourke is back, and that's always cause for celebration. His new book, The C.E.O. of the Sofa, is consciously patterned on Oliver Wendell Holmes's popular 19th century book "The Autocrat of the Breakfast Table," in which O'rourke works into his musings those of other characters.