Free kibbles

SOCIALISM:

Walter Block is forced to admit that the governor of Wisconsin is advocating a more libertarian case than the unions.

"In this particular case, the state of Wisconsin is on the side of the libertarian angels."

That's because Republicans are trying to reduce the size and therefore the power of government and at the same time reduce the size and power of unions.

ECONOMY:

Because of central planning and inflationary monetary policy, China is heading toward a big bust.

"There is certainly good reason to be concerned about China. A study conducted last summer by the Beijing University of Technology reported that a typical Beijing flat costs a staggering 22 times the average income in the city, while The Telegraph reported in December that the same figure for the city of Shenzhen is 18. On a national level, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) concluded last year that a typical Chinese property costs 8.8 times the average income. Compare this to just 5.5 in the United Kingdom in 2007 and 4 in 2009. In the United States, home prices peaked at a little over 5 times average income during its housing bubble, according to the S&P Case-Shiller Index."

Wow.

"As in the United States, the Chinese real-estate market is plagued by overconstruction, and not just in megacities like Shanghai, Beijing, and Shenzhen. Brand-new ghost towns have sprung up all across China in recent years, the most famous of which is perhaps Kangbashi in Ordos, Inner Mongolia. That city's housing capacity can currently accomodate well over 300,000 residents, yet only one tenth of that number actually live there. Numerous other lesser-known cities also boast swaths of high-rise apartments and majestic public buildings while appearing to be entirely devoid of residents."

That's just crazy.

"Why, then, is this mad overproduction continuing? After all, such massive discrepancies between units produced and units actually inhabited should result in falling prices. However, most new real-estate developments are actually snapped up before they're even built. The buyers are usually speculators who refrain from even renting out the properties, hoping instead that they will yield even higher profits once flipped in pristine condition in the future. Bill Powell of Fortune recalls a neighbor in Shanghai who has bought a staggering 43 homes in just three years for this exact reason."

And we thought house-flipping was out of control here.

"In December last year the Politburo announced it would move from a "relatively loose" monetary policy to a more "prudent" one in 2011. Apart from destabilizing the economy, the government knows that high inflation can also trigger civil unrest. This was, for example, a root cause of the Tiananmen Square protests, where the official CPI jumped from 7.3 percent in 1987 to 18.5 percent in 1988, and then to 28 percent in early 1989. Then as now, there is growing unrest in China over soaring consumer prices, yet many people reluctantly accept it — just as long as the economic boom carries on."

Just like the revolutions in the Middle East today. I never heard that reported back then. But slowing down credit expansion always sparks the bust, so if they really tighten monetary policy this year, the bust will come.

Documenting the wonderful deflation in electronic memory prices. Deflation, which means lowering prices, is a good thing.

Another recommendation for silver.

TAX AND SPEND:

Government payouts make up 35 percent of wages.

"Government payouts—including Social Security, Medicare and unemployment insurance—make up more than a third of total wages and salaries of the U.S. population, a record figure that will only increase if action isn’t taken before the majority of Baby Boomers enter retirement.Even as the economy has recovered, social welfare benefits make up 35 percent of wages and salaries this year, up from 21 percent in 2000 and 10 percent in 1960, according to TrimTabs Investment Research using Bureau of Economic Analysis data."

That's insane. And they wonder why our economy is bad.

HEALTH CARE:

The many government interventions in our health care system make it higher priced and lower quality.

"With all this regulation and expensive healthcare, Americans receive only a mediocre quality of care. The United States is far from achieving the lowest world infant mortality and death rates. Fatalities from incorrect healthcare treatment are the third-leading cause of death in the United States after heart disease and cancer. Over 225,000 people die each year from doctors' mistakes: 12,000 deaths occur each year due to unnecessary surgery; 7,000 deaths are due to medication errors in hospitals; 20,000 deaths are due to other hospital errors; 80,000 are due to infections in hospitals; and 106,000 due to the negative effects of drugs.[4]"

That's hardly the high quality system the establishment claims.

WAR:

Libyan rebels call for military support from the US and allies.

FOREIGN POLICY:

Hillary Clinton admits she's a follower if the Council on Foreign Relations. That's probably why she was named Secretary of State.

MISC:

Web service matches investors and entrepreneurs like a dating site. The same technology could match savers with those looking for loans.