Federalizing day care is a terrible idea; New Acton Line podcast episode asks: Are we all Keynesians now?
News & Commentary
Federalizing day care is a terrible idea
By Dan Hugger • November 13, 2019
Presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaks to supporters in Des Moines, Iowa in September 2019
Presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., has unveiled a proposal to centrally plan the family by expanding the school day. She claims that, “aligning school and work schedules is an economic growth and child development strategy.” It betrays a fundamental misunderstanding of the economy and the proper role of the state in it. Harris’s plan would disrupt the current commercial provision of childcare, decimating the daycare industry, and undermine the non-commercial networks of interdependent social institutions which are currently working, unnoticed in the econometric data, to help raise and care for children. It would shift this burden to public schools, already struggling in their primary mission to educate children, which are increasingly expected to be solely responsible for raising and caring for children.
Acton Line podcast: Are we all Keynesians now? Why Lord Acton matters today
November 13, 2019
Economist John Maynard Keynes in his London home
In 1965, Milton Friedman was quoted by Time magazine for saying "We are all Keynesians now," referring to how pervasive the thoughts of economist John Maynard Keynes had become in society and economics. Known as the founding father of macroeconomics, Keynes's economic thought changed the way economics is approached, for better or for worse. How did his economic thought become so dominant and where has it left us? Victor Claar, professor of economics at Florida Gulf Coast University, explains. Afterwards, Acton's Dan Hugger joins the podcast to break down the life and thought of Lord Acton. John Emerich Edward Dalberg-Acton, the namesake of the Acton Institute, is known most for his quote about power, that "power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely." How did Acton become the historian and "magistrate of history" that he's known as today?
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My colleague Dylan Pahman posted a worthwhile reflection on the contrast between communism and free markets in the Cold War-era setting of Stranger Things. I had his analysis in mind while watching the conclusion of the show’s third season, and in ep. 7 (“The Bite”) there’s a noteworthy exchange between Alexei, the Russian scientist, and Murray Bauman, the Russian-speaking American conspiracy theorist. The two visit the Hawkins fair, which presents an entirely new world to Alexei.
In the early church, new converts would often raze pagan temples and build Christian churches on the ruins. A secular version of this triumphant gesture took place this weekend as the unveiling of a statue of President Ronald Reagan, and an invocation of God, took place on the toppled remains of the Berlin Wall.
In a new video from the Property and Environment Research Center in Bozeman, Montana, African hunting guide Mark Haldane explains that “by making the conservation of wildlife habitat economically viable, generating revenue used to fund anti-poaching efforts, and establishing critical income for local communities, trophy hunting has proven to be an essential tool for wildlife conservation. These benefits help turn imperiled African wildlife from liabilities impeding economic growth, into assets to be cared for.”
Albert Einstein became the most celebrated scientist in history 100 years ago. He emigrated to the United States to escape totalitarianism. He is sometimes remembered for his pacifism, socialism, even his defense of Stalin’s show trials. However, he also said things that may surprise many of his critics and supporters. Here are six quotations that show Albert Einstein’s wisdom applied to other areas of human life.
As the Berlin Wall was completed and become virtually impenetrable, extraordinary creativity and determination was necessary to arrive on the other side. It is not known with precision how many escaped to the West, due to the clandestine nature of such ventures. However, what is known is that all those who heroically “beat the Wall” were creative and gutsy characters. Their souls were filled with daring, cunning, and ingenious creativity. They embodied the very enterprising spirit – unternehmergeist – typical of entrepreneurial market-based societies in the West.
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