Author: Thomas DiLorenzo

In his great classic, Socialism, Ludwig von Mises observed that socialists always employed the dual strategy of 1) nationalizing as much industry and property as possible; and 2) “destructionism,” defined as “destroying the social order which is based on private ownership.”  Destructionism can be achieved through the welfare state, progressive taxation, onerous taxation, and regulation and regimentation of private industry.  It is a form of economic sabotage. There is also a third necessity in order for socialists to achieve their goal of a government “planned” society:  the centralization of power and the elimination of all possible exits. As Mises wrote … Continue reading →

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It’s hard to imagine a better endorsement of Donald Trump’s economic policies – whatever they may be, whenever he finds the time to explain them – than the recent endorsement of Hillary Clinton by former Goldman Sachs CEO and U.S. Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson.  As the man in charge of the biggest explosion of corporate welfare in world history – the “TARP” bailouts, he defined himself as a sworn enemy of capitalism and a socialist when it comes to the capital markets.  Socializing billions of dollars in investment bank, insurance company, and automobile industry losses with taxpayer dollars qualifies Paulson … Continue reading →

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“Those who support multiculturalism .  .  . realize that if they are to transform Western societies into strictly regulated, racial-feminist bureaucracies they must first undermine those societies.” –Frank Ellis At the outset of his administration, President Bill Clinton famously declared that “the era of big government is over.”  He then did everything in his power to prove that to be yet another of his slick lies.  At the outset of her administration, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, a one-time East German “communist youth leader,” famously declared that “multiculturalism has been a failure.”  She then did everything in her power to prove … Continue reading →

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A defining characteristic of socialism in all its forms in all places and at all times is a relatively small political elite (and its “private sector” cronies) that lives lavishly by plundering its population, destroying its economy,  imposing a regime of equality of poverty and misery; and turning almost everyone into a dependent on the state for survival.  Joseph Stalin was the wealthiest man in the world during his time, not the Rockefellers, Morgans, or anyone else, as the de facto “owner” of the entire Soviet Union.  African and Latin American socialist political thugs in the “post-colonial era” have long … Continue reading →

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In my forthcoming (July 18) book, The Problem with Socialism, I describe how socialism is always and everywhere an economic poison regardless of the form of government.  Socialism is socialism.  As Frederic Bastiat explained in his classic, The Law, the imposition of one social “plan” or set of “plans” on all of the society – a defining characteristic of all varieties of socialism — will have the same effects whether it is instituted by democracy or by a dictatorship.  Obamacare is Obamacare regardless of whether it was imposed by democracy or by a dictator. All of history has proven that … Continue reading →

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I’m a fan of much of Pat Buchanan’s “America First” foreign policy writings in which he expresses the supposedly outrageous idea that the purpose of the national defense establishment should be to defend against foreign aggressors, and not be the aggressor.  Defense, not offense.  But his “America First” economic writings in defense of protectionism are completely wrongheaded, and often historically inaccurate. The main reason for the wrongheadedness is Buchanan’s pervasive error of the post hoc ergo propter hoc fallacy (“after this, therefore because of this”).  An example of this fallacy would be:  1) A rooster crows in the morning; 2) … Continue reading →

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When the American history profession produces one of those rankings of American presidents their criteria always seem to be geared toward giving the highest rankings to whomever ignores the Constitution the most, over-spends and over-taxes the most, kills the most people in wars, drives up the national debt the most, passes the most freedom-destroying laws, and grows government while shrinking individual liberty the most. That’s why Lincoln, FDR, and Woodrow Wilson are always ranked at the top. In sharp contrast, several years ago Ivan Eland published an “alternative” presidential ranking in the form of his book, Recarving Rushmore, in which … Continue reading →

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When former Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke got wind of the fact that the U.S. Treasury Department was considering replacing Alexander Hamilton on the ten-dollar bill he threw a fit of protest.  Writing on his Brookings Institution blog, Bernanke said that he was “appalled” that “the greatest of the founding fathers” (and the founding father of central banking) would be mistreated in this way. The New York Times immediately weighed in, apparently outraged that such a famous New Yorker would ever be demoted in such a way.  The neocons were especially incensed over the proposal.  After all, David Brooks of the … Continue reading →

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In this article, Claudio Grass, Managing Director at Global Gold Switzerland, talks to economist and Mises Institute Senior Fellow Thomas DiLorenzo. This exclusive interview covers central bank monetary policies, Keynesian economics, the economic“recovery,“ political correctness, and much more. Claudio Grass: Thomas, it is an honor to have this opportunity to talk to you. I am also pleased to announce that you will be delivering the keynote speech at the BFI Inner Circle Wealth Forum in Florida on April the 18th and 19th. Let’s get started! Given the limited impact of loose monetary policy thus far, where do you think we are … Continue reading →

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In his brilliant classic, A Disquisition on Government, John C. Calhoun warned that a written constitution would never be sufficient to restrain the governmental leviathan.  The net tax consumers (those who received more in government benefits than they paid in taxes), especially government employees, would relentlessly argue away the effectiveness of constitutional restrictions on government, he predicted.  The net tax payers would inevitably be overwhelmed and defeated.  There was never a truer political prediction. In his new book, 9 Presidents Who Screwed Up America – And Four Who Tried to Save Her, Brion McClanahan presents a masterful and superbly-scholarly discussion … Continue reading →

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The late Senator Everett Dirksen once said “there’s not a dimes worth of difference” between the Democrats and Republicans in Congress.  The subsequent four decades since he made that remark have certainly proven his prescience.  The current “Paul Ryan budget,” which seems to have been written, line by line, by Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, is slam-dunk proof of Senator Dirksen’s observation. Thomas Mullen has just published a new book, Where Do Conservatives and Liberals Come From?, that goes a long way toward explaining why this is.  Mullen traces the philosophical underpinnings of conservatism and “liberalism” (in the American sense … Continue reading →

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The Black Lives Matter movement has persuaded Princeton University President Christopher Eisgruber to begin expunging  the name and image of Woodrow Wilson (Princeton president for eight years) from campus buildings because of Wilson’s undeniably racist words and actions (He re-segregated the federal government, for example).  Their next target, who should have been the movement’s first, should be the most publicly outspoken racist and white supremacist of all American presidents – Abraham Lincoln. The college students involved in the Black Lives Matter movement should include in their education a reading of the book, Forced Into Glory: Abraham Lincoln’s White Dream, by … Continue reading →

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When Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton was an undergraduate at Harvard he took time out to become a “Publius Fellow” at the “Straussian” neocon Pentagon propaganda mill known as the Claremont Institute in Claremont, California.  After graduating he returned to Claremont Graduate School to pursue graduate studies in “government” under the tutelage of the “Straussians” there, but dropped out to pursue a law degree instead.  He then joined the U.S. Army, eventually going to Iraq to kill Muslims.   All of this is why he is a darling of the most crazed neocons, especially Bill Kristol and his ilk.  Since these crazed … Continue reading →

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On October 10 the online History News Network expressed its disapproval (yet again) of a statement that Ron Paul made several years ago regarding the American “Civil War.”  In a television interview Ron Paul expressed disagreement with the new, politically-correct legend that slavery was the one and only cause of the Civil War.  The long-simmering conflict over states’ rights versus consolidation and nationalism was the main problem, he said.  So the History News Network highlighted an article by one Dale Schlundt, an adjunct professor at Northwest Vista College, on “Why People Like Ron Paul Falsely Believe Slavery Wasn’t the Cause … Continue reading →

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When socialism finally collapsed all around the world in the late ‘80s/early ‘90s the academic Marxists did not just throw in the towel and face reality.  Indeed, not one of them has ever apologized for providing intellectual support for some of the worst mass murderers in world history – Stalin, Mao, Castro, and the rest of the communist/socialist gangsters.  Instead, they reinvented themselves in several different ways, including posing as “environmentalists,” and as “cultural Marxists.” Taking their cue from socialist economist Robert Heilbroner in a September 10, 1990 New Yorker article entitled “After Communism,” many Marxists began promoting socialist central … Continue reading →