An Open Letter to Israel
Before any hard information could be verified, all the news sources I rely on-the television network channels, National Public Radio, CNN, and the major newspapers-were unanimous in their immediate condemnation of Israel for its takeover of the Mavi Marmara on the morning of May 31. As the reports had it, nine unarmed, peaceable Turkish activists had been brutally murdered by Jewish commandos without cause. Such phrases as “public relations... [Read More...]
In support of the Securities & Exchange Dismission
An investor visiting Washington, DC and chancing upon the handsome building at 100 F Street would discover on its façade, in the government’s restrained lettering, that its occupant was the “Security and Exchange Commission.” And were he to doubt its legitimacy for any reason, underneath its name the building bore the Great Seal of the United States complete with eagle, arrows, and olive branch. Widening his gaze, the visitor could... [Read More...]
Wall Street Journal article on regulation
The following article is reprinted in full from the June 12, 2010 issue of the Wall Steet Journal. My posting on the SEC, written prior to the article’s publication, could serve, I believe, as a prime example of what the author describes as regulatory failure. The Gulf Spill, the Financial Crisis and Government Failure Both Republicans and Democrats fail to see the limits of centralized regulation in a modern market economy. By GERALD P. O’DRISCOLL... [Read More...]
Snapshots of the Orient
I recently took a two-week cruise on Holland America’s “Amsterdam” that began in Hong Kong and ended in Kobe, Japan. (Actually, my trip was only a segment of the ship’s round-the-world excursion,) At Kobe I undertook four days of independent travel in Japan by visiting the nearby city of Kyoto and then returning home by way of Osaka’s airport. This brief encounter with the Far East provided a few scattered impressions... [Read More...]
Stelzer’s Travels, Installment 6
Within a week I found myself enrolled along with a dozen or so other newcomers in a two-month orientation program. It was designed, we were told, to introduce us to our surroundings by first presenting the “big picture” and only then-through a series of ever-narrowing apertures, as it were-gradually focusing on our immediate surroundings and the role expected of us in them. Our instructors began by summarizing the knowledge gained by... [Read More...]
Governance Redefined, Part I
GOVERNANCE REDEFINED This essay is a companion to “Money Redefined” posted on this blog October 1, 2009 and may still be found under the Economics heading. ABSTRACT Examples are given of the poor performance of the US Government in meeting today’s problems. The conclusion is reached that its deficiencies are endemic to representative democracies in general thanks to their inherent structural faults. These faults are then... [Read More...]
Governance Redefined, Part II
GOVERNANCE REDEFINED PART II. THE GOVERNMENT OF POSTCAPIA Were the writer to claim the invention of an entirely new and presumably improved form of government, the reader would have good reason to question his presumption. And it would only deepen his skepticism to learn that the author of these alleged revelations boasts so little qualification in his chosen subject-neither a whit of education nor experience in political science much less professional... [Read More...]
Governance Redefined, Part III
GOVERNANCE REDEFINED PART III. THE AUTONOMENT Picture a darkened, round room of some forty-feet in diameter. On its walls are nine, evenly-spaced, large electronic displays each registering an index measuring the extent to which the needs of Postcapians are currently being fulfilled in a particular sector. The sectors undergoing this surveillance are: sustenance, shelter, health, safety, education, environment, works, research, and personal... [Read More...]
Governance Redefined, Part IV
GOVERNANCE REDEFINED PART IV. THE VOLITIONMENT If Postcapia were an entirely static country, then the Autonoment would suffice to fill its governmental needs. However, no country is entirely static. Over time populations change as to their size, composition, tastes, attitudes, living standards, average age, and so on. Technological innovations alter transportation, manufacturing, distribution, communications, entertainment, and social discourse. ... [Read More...]
Addenda to “Governance Redefined”
THE FOOLISHNESS OF LEGISLATORS: The Greek financial crisis has made me realize that, rather than bothering to criticize representative governments, I could have saved myself a good deal of effort and my readers a good deal of time by simply calling attention to the manner in which these nations have condemned themselves. Greece is but the standard bearer for a long list of representative democracies-among them, Japan, Portugal, Spain, Italy,... [Read More...]