[Henry Hnyellar]

Did author cover the percent of income derived from Fed Gov contracts by the likes of General Dynamics, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and other similar large companies, let alone much smaller companies the derive ALL their income from Fed Gov contracts? If not, he’s FOS and conveniently ignoring a much larger problem. Given this is (Un)Reason(able) magazine, I’m not surprised.

[RandFan]

I dont excuse all that you make some good points!

[Worldtraveler once upon a time]

---- "Did author cover the percent of income derived from Fed Gov contracts by the likes of General Dynamics, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and other similar large companies, let alone much smaller companies the derive ALL their income from Fed Gov contracts?"

A good point. Here's another, as non-capitalist beggars are lecturing the masses on capitalism:

Things which are NOT capitalism:

1) "Reason is published by Reason Foundation, a nonprofit education and research organization." $ 23.3 million in 2024. President David Nott raked in $ 418,617 plus and additional; "related" $ 112,965. Compensation and benefits for these non-capitalists gobbles up about half their "donations."

Source: The Reason Foundation -- Los Angeles, CA -- Tax-exempt since March 1979

2) De Rugy's "Mercatus Center" is "a non-profit, free-market-oriented research organization affiliated with George Mason University. It advocates for market-based solutions to public policy issues and collaborates with policy experts, lobbyists, and government officials." $39,338,379 in 2024.

Mercatus Center Inc Executive Director Daniel Rothschild raked in $ 503,750 plus an additional $ 32,780 in "related" income. More than 40 percent of their "donations" go to salaries and benefits of these "capitalists."

Veronique De Rugy took in $ 315,671 plus an additional $ 20,403 in 2024.

Source: Mercatus Center Inc Form 990

Government funding of so much is not capitalism, and fat-cat talking heads -- even the ones one might like -- are, as non-profits gaining advantages the "marketplace" would otherwise have them prove.

Close down the non-profits not DIRECTLY involved in actual charity would make a great many moan, just as closing the many scams run out of USAID made for angry fat cats, their sinecures gone without GOVERNMENT.

I wonder what "senior fellow" De Rugy would do..... Probably plead for government help.

[America1st77]

Libertarians are allergic to victory. The purists of Reason would sooner see Democrat mobs loot and privilege than sacrifice their hypothetical, childlike principles. Given that their latest great white hope, the deeply odd, Javier Milei, has run the Argentine economy into the ground (not hard- one leader, left or right- seems to do it every 5-7 years or less), they should perhaps revisit some of their more dogmatic opinions, but they won’t- content to snipe from the sidelines as they did during the 2024 election, when they had a real chance of actually influencing national politics.