TEA PARTY ECONOMIST

The TEA PARTY ECONOMIST Ron Paul's original staff economist, Dr. Gary North! Thursday, January 31, 2013

Liberty Is Making the World Richer. You’re Included. “The owl of Minerva flies only at dusk.” I came across that phrase many times over 45 years ago, when I was writing my first book, Marx’s Religion of Revolution (1968). (You can download it for free here.) What does it mean? Wikipedia explains. The nineteenth-century idealist philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel famously noted that... READ MORE 3D Printing: Build Your Own Guns Want to own an unregistered gun? Be patient. A build-it-yourself kit is almost here. The gun control crowd is freaking out. They see what’s coming. There is nothing they can do about it. Even the New York Times sees it. “We now have 3-D printers that can manufacture firearms components in the basement,” said Representative... READ MORE What Is Your Salary? Anyone Can Buy This Information From Equifax. So, you thought your salary was between you and your employer. Silly you. Your employer probably sells this information to Equifax. Equifax then sells it to anyone who wants to know: bill collectors, a firm that may make you an offer, or even me. I don’t care what you make. But what if I did?... READ MORE “If I Don’t Know What’s Coming, I Won’t Have to Change.” This sounds like a silly statement. It is silly. But it is almost universally held. How many men die without making a will? Millions. Why? “If I Don’t Know What’s Coming, I Won’t Have to Change.” Wives refuse to buy $500,000 of level-term life insurance on their husbands’ lives, as owners of the policies. Why... READ MORE Payroll Taxes Rise. Consumer Confidence Plummets. Congress Is Shocked. Shocked! In November, consumer confidence was measured at 71.5. Today, it is barely above 58. That is a major decline. This month, the Social Security/FICA tax was hiked on wage-earners. They are becoming pessimistic. They should. The politicians thought a FICA tax hike was a no-brainer. The economy had recovered. The decrease, which began in 2010,... READ MORE Beating Obamacare: Hospitals Across Borders You are stuck with Obamacare if you need health insurance. If you can pay for treatment, you can get treatment far cheaper with no waiting period. Here’s how. No rationing. No standing in line. I like the hospital ship idea. Get on board, sail 200 miles outside the USA, and you get cheap, efficient care. ... READ MORE Why Your Town Is Going Broke Cook County’s Treasurer has created a website where citizens can find out how far in the hole their governments are. They are all so far in debt that future taxpayers will lose their homes, she says. “In May, 2012, the collective debt reported by the local primary taxing agencies in Cook County was more than... READ MORE DVD, RIP The Philips Company, a Netherlands giant, is best known in the USA for the Norelco electric razor. It has sold off its consumer electronics line. Fifty years ago, Philips introduced the audio cassette. It could no longer compete with Japan in the consumer electronics market. The head of the company said that the DVD, even... READ MORE Parents, Be Prepared. The Boy Scouts May Accept Homosexual Scoutmasters. “Be prepared. That’s the Boy Scouts’ marching song. Be prepared, as through life you march along.” Tom Lehrer wrote that ditty over 60 years ago. It ended with this: “If you’re looking for adventure of a new and different kind, and you come across a Girl Scout who is similarly inclined, don’t be nervous, don’t... READ MORE Escape from New York: Hedge Fund Millionaires Head for Florida There is no state income tax in Florida. Real estate is sand cheap. Buy a mansion foe what a townhouse in New York City costs. There is snow. There are hurricanes. But you can get them in New York City, too. Say that you earn $1,000,000 a year or more. Would you prefer to pay... READ MORE