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It was during my childhood that I first heard of the advice: Do not put all your eggs in one basket. As I was growing up, I was able to understand better the meaning of this phrase as I...

The Matrix: A Journey of Individual Freedom

by Charlotte D. | Cinema

The Matrix film series’ dystopic world has captivated audiences with its intriguing story, charismatic characters, and breath-taking visual effects ever since the release of the...

We need hundreds of Tax Havens

In several languages, such as French, Portuguese, and Spanish, tax havens are referred to as tax ‘heavens’ instead of tax ‘havens’. Personally, I prefer this second terminology as it...

What is the market?

We often see the term ‘market’ being used by economists, journalists, politicians, and various other people. This term appears frequently in newspapers and on television, and it is very...

Philosophy

Do not put all your eggs in one basket

We need hundreds of Tax Havens

We have to go back to the realm of ideas, back to the economic principles, common sense and rationality. We have to renormalise high-performance, boldness and rationality. And in the case of the tax havens, nations need to be optimised into becoming competitive tax havens and not into becoming a tax hell where the State is the central planner of the economy. Tax hells have been tried several times and they failed. And the more a nation gradually goes towards becoming a tax hell, the more it becomes poorer.

The Overton Window

The basic idea behind the Overton Window is that there is a range of ideas that are considered politically feasible or acceptable, and that this range is not fixed but can shift over time. At any given moment, there are some ideas that are widely accepted, some that are controversial, and some that are considered outside the mainstream.

Public Education – A socialist fetish

by Fernando Chiocca | Philosophy

Much is said about education. In fact, it seems that saying that ‘education is the solution for the world’ is, alongside various forms of entertainment, in a hedonistic society, unanimous. I intend to question the reason for this fetish for education, but first I want to question why people turn to the worst means of realising this fantasy, the state.

Cars in Free European Cities

by Horea Christian | Philosophy

Liberty respecters throughout the world have a bit of a love affair with cars, indeed it appears rather similar to the love affair which liberty disrespecters have with centrally planned golem conveyors. But is it just as dumb?

Economics

What is the market?

The market is a fundamental piece for the functioning of the economy, playing an important role in the allocation of scarce resources in society.

The Marginal Revolution and the Paradox of Value

The Marginal Utility refers to how much satisfaction we get from consuming an additional unit. Do not confuse this with total utility. An example: if we are thirsty and drink 3 glasses of water, the total utility is the satisfaction we feel from drinking the 3 glasses, and the marginal utility is the satisfaction that each glass gives us individually.

No Clear Nor Close Target

by Josh Lauson Ascough | Economics

Price stability and a positive rate of inflation should not be the aims of a monetary authority, as such policies tend to create severe financial instability. Prices should fluctuate to reflect the productivity of individual industries and the economy as a whole, and the efficient (or inefficient) allocation of resources.

What is Money?

People are in constant search to satisfy their needs. However, it is very difficult nowadays for us to be able to satisfy our needs alone. It is impossible for a single person to produce everything he needs to have a minimally modern life: it is not possible to obtain time, much less, all the knowledge necessary to learn how to produce everything (HAYEK, 1945). It is natural for each person to be better at some tasks than others, so people specialise in different tasks (MISES, 2008).

‘Inflation’ is still transitory

by Daniel Gomes Luis | Economics

I was wrong about both the persistence and magnitude of the price increases of goods and services. What did escape my reasoning, you ask? In short, I never thought banks and other credit institutions would be so stupid and
reckless.

Politics

How a Georgian ‘church’ had been exempting men from conscription

by Ucha Goshadze | Politics

For all these years, the immoral practice of forcibly taking 18 to 27-year-old young men and exploiting their labour has been justified with patriotic slogans and the unwillingness of the government to stop treating people like a free resource of cheap labour for the duration of 12 months. However, patriotism is not just a word; it is an act of showing your respect in material form to the people who voluntarily want to defend your country, because patriotism or any other virtue can only be moral if it is done voluntarily and not under the threat of force.

French Elections: The Illusion of Democracy

by Charlotte D. | Politics

The French presidential election happened a few weeks ago and the results were no surprise to myself nor to many people. From the first round, it was clear that the left-wing Emmanuel Macron would once again win and be the president of France for a second term. Those who have been following the situation in France over the last five years know this result can only be tragic for France’s future in terms of freedom.

However, I thought it was important, in this context, to discuss the notion of democracy, that is always being praised in France, particularly by politicians, and what the figures of this French presidential election reveal about it. By the end of this article, it will be clear to you why France is not a democracy and why democracies are doomed to fail.

New Geopolitical Equilibrium

by Flavian Constantinovici | Politics

All conflicts between two or more people could end in two ways. Either the people involved sit down and try to find a compromise in order to get back to normal relationships, or they completely ignore each other for the rest of their lives and the conflicts ends once they are all dead. For nations, the second alternative is almost impossible, because nations live for centuries or even ages. In consequence, a compromise will follow sooner or later. If all nations involved are satisfied with the compromises they have made, we enter a new phase of equilibrium, in case of states, a geopolitical equilibrium.

Who is responsible for the energy prices surge?

by Flavian Constantinovici | Politics

Gas prices have risen to record levels in October this year and are back to similar levels as we speak. The main reasons that the mainstream media are giving you are the Ukraine-Russia tensions, or the delay regarding the approval of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. But what if at the core of the surging prices in Europe was the European Union itself?

They want the end of detached houses

by Lucas Nunes | Politics

The government of Emmanuel Macron wants to put an end to the detached houses, according to Minister Delegate for Housing, Emmanuelle Wargon. France is not alone when it comes to those absurd ideas regarding housing and we should be concerned.

Science & Technology

Essential reading for your pro-lockdown friends

by Imre Wessels | Science & Technology

“The quicker I give up my freedoms, the faster I will get them back”, said the person who has never read a history book. “Two weeks to flatten the curve” turned into lockdown measures that already have lasted over a year.

Get a Clear Picture of Science News

by Horea Christian | Science & Technology

Pop-science is currently no topic to overlook on social media. Websites or social media groups sharing factoids or infographics amass millions of likes and receive a high number of content re-shares. In parallel, pop-science magazines also attract many readers and have a strong online presence.

What You Need to Know to Join the Alt-Tech Exodus

by Horea Christian | Science & Technology

So, you’ve heard that big tech companies have transcended the niggling free market and reached the lofty heights of partisan politics — and act accordingly. Unlike prominent political figures you might not make the top of the purge list, but it’s no secret that censorship is surging. Both to protect your freedom, and to stop providing resources to those who would undermine it, it makes sense to jump ship. Now, when everybody else is also doing it. But how?

History

City air makes you free: How cities freed medieval people

‘Stadtluft macht frei’ (‘City air makes you free’) is a popular German saying, referring to a principle of law in place in Europe during the Middle Ages. This one would enable a serf living unfree under feudalism to become free from their lord, in a city, after a period of one year and one day. This increased the migration of medieval people seeking freedom from the feudal territories to the cities from the 11th century onwards.

Because of that freedom, cities became a centre of trade, gathering merchants, entertainers and much more, and offering a large variety of products and services. This made the cities vibrant and prosperous, with its inhabitants enjoying better life conditions than on the feudal territories.

Britain’s Free Radio Revolution

In the beginning of the 1960s, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) had the monopoly of radio in the United Kingdom. In fact, apart from one commercial TV network, the airwaves were owned by the BBC. As it happens with any monopoly, because of the lack of competition, the broadcaster was not particularly interested in providing better quality services, and ones that would fit the demand of the British. Because of that, some people started their own radio stations broadcasting their programmes from boats located outside the British territorial waters. These were known as free (or pirate) radios.

The Window Tax: Daylight Robbery

The Window Tax was a property tax based on the number of windows in a house, first introduced in Britain in 1696 and later on, in France. It resulted in a new form of tax avoidance, as people started to brick up their windows in order to avoid paying the tax. Those old houses with windows having been bricked up or plastered can still be seen in England and France today.

Reblochon: the French Cheese born from Tax Evasion