Daily Analysis

Senator Bennett, R.I.P.

I shed no tears that incumbent Senator Robert Bennett lost his fight to get nominated for a fourth term. His support of the bailout and other big-government policies was a sign that he had become far too comfortable representing established interests and forgot that…

Say Goodbye to England

Okay, the title of this post is an absurd exaggeration, but I am not optimistic about the future of the United Kingdom. Government spending has exploded over the last ten-plus years (the largest expansion in the burden of government spending among developed nations),…

Encouraging Polling Numbers

I realize that public opinion polls are quirky and that answers often depend on how questions are phrased. Nonetheless, these results seem very strong.  As reported on the Bankrupting America website, there is more than three-to-one opposition against a value-added…

Great Moments in Government Stupidity.

The blogging about Greece is too depressing, so let’s kick a couple of government bureaucracies for bone-headed stupidity. This excerpt is from a Pajamas Media story about how the Customs bureaucrats mistakenly confused BB guns for machine guns, and then turned…

Using Welfare to Subsidize Terrorism

Here are some very depressing stories. The Daily Mail reports that a European Court has ruled that the U.K. no longer can impose restrictions on welfare payments to women married to suspected terrorists: A European court has instructed Britain to drop restrictions…

Victory Over Surveillance Statism in Arizona

Here’s a bit of good news to end the weekend. Arizona politicians have been forced to suspend a statewide speed camera program. I’m especially pleased to see that civil disobedience played a role in forcing politicians to pull the plug on the Orwellian…

Will the Greek Bailout Work?

As expected, the European Union and International Monetary Fund have chosen to subsidize the profligacy of Greek politicians. A deal has just been announced. As the Washington Post reports:  Greece on Sunday announced a long-awaited deal with the European Union and…

Is Japan the Next Greece?

Total government debt is about 115 percent of GDP in Greece, which clearly is one of the factors that spooked investors and led to the bailout. But Japan – at least on paper – is in much worse shape with government debt approaching 200 percent of GDP. And…