Crony Capitalism

From the General Motors bailout to subsidies for Solyndra, crony capitalism is as serious a threat to liberty, free markets and civil society as ever. Cato Institute Senior Fellow Tom G. Palmer recently discussed The Morality of Capitalism (free pdf), the financial crisis and cronyism at the John Locke Foundation.



The book is quick and rewarding read.

Does Kentucky have any clear-cut examples of this kind of crony capitalism?

Capitalism and choice

"When you hear 'Satisfaction Guaranteed or Your Money Back,' the last thing that should come to mind is a government program. In free markets where choice prevails, conflict is minimized. If you don’t like the wares in one store, there’s no need to throw up a picket line, attend boring meetings and be talked down to by public 'servants,' or wait until an election and hope that 50%-plus-one will vote the way you want. You shop elsewhere. End of discussion." - Lawrence W. Reed, Foundation for Economic Education.

The morality of capitalism

Capitalism deserves a moral defense, but even those who appreciate the moral superiority of capitalism sometimes find themselves ill equipped to offer a clear response to critics.

A new book from the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, Students for Liberty and the John Templeton Foundation aims to provide just that intellectual ammunition. The Morality of Capitalism, edited by Tom G. Palmer, gathers a diverse group of scholars, writers and business leaders from across the globe to extoll the virtues of capitalism.

I recorded a quick podcast with Tom about the book and its authors.



Student groups can get bulk copies shipped to them from Students for Liberty.

Video: The Morality of Profit

This video is a great discussion on a basic economic concept: profit.

So often we hear about the "evil" people who "exploit" others by profiting. This video addresses that: