Free Republic

In following up on some research into anarcho-capitalism (how a society with a free-market economy can function with little or no government), I ran across this paper that contains some interesting facts that might provide useful references and quotes. As usual, the facts are quite at odds with what is commonly held to be true. From: An American Experiment in Anarcho-Capitalism: the Not So Wild, Wild, West by Terry L. Anderson and P.J. Hill, Department of Economics, Montana State University PDF of article: http://mises.org/journals/jls/3_1/3_1_2.pdf from page 6: In his book, Frontier Violence: Another Look, W. Eugene Hollon stated that the...

The 'Recession' Is a Media Myth Tuesday, April 01, 2008 By John R. Lott, Jr. E-Mail Respond Print Share: DiggFacebookStumbleUpon During the 2000 election, with Bill Clinton as president, the economy was viewed through rose-colored glasses. According to polls, voters didn’t realize that the country was in a recession. Although the economy started shrinking in July 2000, most Americans through the entire year thought that the economy was fine. But over the last half-year, the media and politicians have said we were in a recession even while the economy was still growing. Gas prices are going up. The economy is...

ByTimothy Noah Posted Friday, Sept. 3, 2004, at 3:56 PM PT When I was a boy, the Soviets occupied part of Austria. I saw their tanks in the streets. I saw communism with my own eyes. I remember the fear we had when we had to cross into the Soviet sector. Growing up, we were told, "Don't look the soldiers in the eye. Look straight ahead." It was a common belief that Soviet soldiers could take a man out of his own car and ship him off to the Soviet Union as slave labor. My family didn't have a car...

Some Key Conservatives Uneasy About Bush SCOTT LINDLAW Associated Press WASHINGTON - When an influential group of conservatives gathers in downtown Washington each week, they often get a political pep talk from a senior Bush administration official or campaign aide. They don't expect a fellow Republican to deliver a blistering critique of President Bush's handling of the Iraq war. But nearly 150 conservatives listened in silence recently as a veteran of the Nixon, Ford and Reagan administrations ticked off a litany of missteps in Iraq by the Bush White House. "This war is not going well," said Stefan Halper, a...

Stossel reports standing in the cold will not give you a cold in the winter. ABCNEWS.com Lies, Myths and Downright Stupidity Stossel's List of Popularly Reported Misconceptions Commentary By John Stossel ABCNEWS.com Jan. 23— Can going out in the cold give you a cold? Is life getting worse? Can money buy happiness? You may be among the many who would answer yes to these questions. You'd be wrong. There are a lot of popularly held beliefs out there that simply aren't true. Yet the media tend to report on many of them as though they were hard facts. Here's my...

  Media Myths Fuel the Clergy Abuse ScandalNational Catholic Register April 7-13 2002Scandal in the Church: Part One by JOHN BURGER and KATHRYN JEAN LOPEZBOSTON - The way some of the media report it, one would believe the Church is overrun with pedophile priests, and bishops are protecting the abusers rather than the victims. No priest is to be trusted alone with children. It's not safe for a kid to go to confession or to become an altar boy. Several assumptions need to be called into question here. Is the clergy full of pedophiles? Has the Church covered up...