“Markets are wise,” markets “are pregnant with information,” markets “are information personified,” “ignore market signals at your peril.” About what’s been written so far, the bet here is that no one who professes a free market lean would quibble with any of the aphorisms. It’s all basic stuff. Which is why it’s so puzzling that accepted wisdom about markets goes out the window when financial institutions come into the picture. George W. Bush most famously (and intensely foolishly) asserted in 2008 that he believed in free markets, but that they weren’t working properly. Sorry, but markets...…“Markets are wise,” markets “are pregnant with information,” markets “are information personified,” “ignore market signals at your peril.” About what’s been written so far, the bet here is that no one who professes a free market lean would quibble with any of the aphorisms. It’s all basic stuff. Which is why it’s so puzzling that accepted wisdom about markets goes out the window when financial institutions come into the picture. George W. Bush most famously (and intensely foolishly) asserted in 2008 that he believed in free markets, but that they weren’t working properly. Sorry, but markets...WW…

When British writer Viv Groskop was living in Russia in the early 1990s, she was an object of immense curiosity. The Russians were intensely poor, which meant Groskop was seen as someone in possession of what they didn’t have, including “what everybody wanted,” Levi’s jeans. Imagine that. A common clothing item for the typical American was a must-have for the Russian people. Such is life without markets. Absent them, those producing goods and services have little incentive to learn about their potential customers not just to meet their needs, but also to anticipate them. In the former...…When British writer Viv Groskop was living in Russia in the early 1990s, she was an object of immense curiosity. The Russians were intensely poor, which meant Groskop was seen as someone in possession of what they didn’t have, including “what everybody wanted,” Levi’s jeans. Imagine that. A common clothing item for the typical American was a must-have for the Russian people. Such is life without markets. Absent them, those producing goods and services have little incentive to learn about their potential customers not just to meet their needs, but also to anticipate them. In the former...WW…

Throughout its 100-year-plus history, U.S. antitrust policy has studiously ignored the issue of global economic competitiveness. Indeed, in their zeal to maintain competitive balance between players in America’s domestic markets, U.S. antitrust enforcers have often harmed U.S. companies while helping their foreign counterparts. This has diminished U.S. international competitiveness, especially in advanced industries. The latest example is the Justice Department’s possible intervention to block Microsoft from acquiring video game maker Activision, a move that would benefit the Japanese...…Throughout its 100-year-plus history, U.S. antitrust policy has studiously ignored the issue of global economic competitiveness. Indeed, in their zeal to maintain competitive balance between players in America’s domestic markets, U.S. antitrust enforcers have often harmed U.S. companies while helping their foreign counterparts. This has diminished U.S. international competitiveness, especially in advanced industries. The latest example is the Justice Department’s possible intervention to block Microsoft from acquiring video game maker Activision, a move that would benefit the Japanese...WW…

When John Tamny asked me to write a book review of I knew immediately what resonated with me and how I wanted to convey these thoughts. But as a couple of weeks elapsed since finishing the book, more and more thoughts crisscrossed my consciousness. As I studied these feelings, I surprisingly discovered that my appreciation for my family and upbringing was at the center of the pleasant emotions which stirred inside of me as I turned each page. But first, let’s get the obligatory twaddle out of the way. The author: Amor Towles. Did I enjoy the book? Yes. Did the author’s prose and writing...…When John Tamny asked me to write a book review of I knew immediately what resonated with me and how I wanted to convey these thoughts. But as a couple of weeks elapsed since finishing the book, more and more thoughts crisscrossed my consciousness. As I studied these feelings, I surprisingly discovered that my appreciation for my family and upbringing was at the center of the pleasant emotions which stirred inside of me as I turned each page. But first, let’s get the obligatory twaddle out of the way. The author: Amor Towles. Did I enjoy the book? Yes. Did the author’s prose and writing...WW…

The rise of crypto currency has been slowed by the lack of physical assets into which to invest one’s digital assets. Wildly shifting sands have all too often made crypto investments a roller coaster. The entire crypto ecosystem (Sam Bankman-Fried comes to mind) has been a total free-for-all in which picking winners and losers is a crapshoot. But what if you were able to tie crypto to underlying assets that have a relatively stable cash flow value? Is it possible today to connect tech-oriented real estate with crypto capital? Mitch DiRaimondo, whose father founded the west coast commercial...…The rise of crypto currency has been slowed by the lack of physical assets into which to invest one’s digital assets. Wildly shifting sands have all too often made crypto investments a roller coaster. The entire crypto ecosystem (Sam Bankman-Fried comes to mind) has been a total free-for-all in which picking winners and losers is a crapshoot. But what if you were able to tie crypto to underlying assets that have a relatively stable cash flow value? Is it possible today to connect tech-oriented real estate with crypto capital? Mitch DiRaimondo, whose father founded the west coast commercial...WW…

SubscribeSign In Subscribe Ad-Free.APXStory Streamrecent articlesFires are always burning. Always. Even the naively referenced “great moderation” (1985-2007) was defined by a number of major market corrections and crashes (24% on October 19, 1987 alone), currency debacles, business failures, not to mention wars and terrorist attacks that invariably spook the commercial sector.What rates stress is that the fires are a sign of progress. Capitalism is the personification of messy, at which point it shouldn’t surprise any serious reader that in the most dynamically capitalist country on earth...…SubscribeSign In Subscribe Ad-Free.APXStory Streamrecent articlesFires are always burning. Always. Even the naively referenced “great moderation” (1985-2007) was defined by a number of major market corrections and crashes (24% on October 19, 1987 alone), currency debacles, business failures, not to mention wars and terrorist attacks that invariably spook the commercial sector.What rates stress is that the fires are a sign of progress. Capitalism is the personification of messy, at which point it shouldn’t surprise any serious reader that in the most dynamically capitalist country on earth...WW…