The “Poverty Industrial Complex”: No Hands Up, Just Handouts

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There are several good opinion pieces on the subject of the War On Poverty at the Washington Post site. Marc Thiessen has some thoughts on Why the Left Is Attacking Paul Ryan, and a nice piece by George Will made roughly the same point a few days ago. Will notes that 50 years ago, Daniel Patrick Moynihan made the same points as Ryan and received roughly the same treatment. Apparently, you can’t discuss facts about poverty and have a serious discussion about policy without inviting accusations of racism. Sacred cow chips indeed!

The Intrusive Retribution Service

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There is good reason to question validity of IRS investigation. Make that plural: reasons! Right at the top of the list is Obama’s assertion, on national television, that there was “‘not even a smidgen of corruption’ in the IRS political targeting scandal,” just as the so-called investigation was getting underway. According to the author of the piece at the link, Obama’s statement could even be construed as obstruction of justice. Special prosecutor, please.

Drink Deep The Dregs… And Get Used To It

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Attempts by the administration and its cheerleaders to sell Obamacare in the last weeks of the open enrollment period (ending March 31) look increasingly desperate. John C. Goodman in the WSJ describes the law’s spectacular failure to achieve its stated objectives as well as the inherent unworkability caused by the mandates, subsidies, and incentives created by the ACA. No, it is not “just insurance,” unless you think community rating can be sustained in an actuarial black hole of adverse selection. The ACA is a mess.

Ought We, But Can’t? Can We, But Oughtn’t?

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There oughtta be a law! Do something! But demands that we “ought” to do something don’t mean that we can do it very well or do it at all. Such is often the case with government action. Likewise, just because we “can” do something doesn’t imply that we ought to do it, which is a danger of making resources available to politicians. Here’s a great essay on this topic that appeared in The Freeman in 2009, with another hat tip to Don Boudreaux at Cafe Hayek.

Statists Need A Miracle Every Day

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Don Boudreaux resurrects a cartoon about a “miracle” central to a certain analytical theme in economics. He castigates a large contingent within the profession for failing to acknowledge, or even recognize, that effective government action to rectify market failures often requires such a miracle. In fact, it would usually require a miracle for government action to avoid creating additional welfare losses. It’s something we should know well. 

Religion? Defense Against Guilt? Or Sanctimony?

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The Rise of Secular Religion — This is a fascinating book review, and I think I know exactly what the author and the reviewer are talking about. Among other interesting twists: the apparent thirst for an alternative form of salvation among the secular Left. A sense of guilt abounds, so I don’t think this kind of behavior qualifies as mere sanctimony. Are secular humanist Libertarians guilty of the same tendencies?