The free market is a wonderful device for coordinating our productive activity to maximize the satisfaction of our needs. It encourages people to cooperate both with those they know and with strangers. Since markets foster both prosperity and personal liberty, communism has been consigned to the dustbin of history except in places like North Korea. […]

There is a true, empirical, universal, statistical generalization that the Republican Party should understand if it expects to attract the American middle class. This generalization is especially applicable to college educated, well-off voters, the opinion leaders in most communities. Here it is: Accomplished, successful individuals normally become Green. In economic terms the demand for environmental […]

Last week FREE hosted a program for federal judges and law professors, “Personal Health Care Choices and Public Policy.” The speakers included some of America’s most well-known, seasoned, and respected analysts. All are PhDs and MDs from top places including Columbia, Harvard, Hopkins, MIT, and Yale. (Please contact FREE’s office for a list of speakers, […]

Please click here for Free the Children by John Goodman.

Ramona and I spent the best part of last week on a remote family guest ranch. It is a few hours drive from Bozeman followed by a twelve-mile wagon ride. The ranch was built as a private retreat in the early 1920s and retains original character and charm. We were there with a few old […]

Of the things that determine a community’s level of wellbeing, possibly the most important is social capital. The more involved individuals are in voluntary networks, and the more trust people have for others, the more productive, and happier they and their community are apt to be. In many parts of the world people distrust others […]

There are a few mistaken beliefs that persist for decades if not generations. Some are trivial, others consequential. Here is my modest effort to put some to rest. “The exception proves the rule.” This is simply silly and of no great moment, merely annoying. I can’t imagine a logical system in which an exception proves […]

Bozeman is remarkable for its many nonprofits devoted to environmental issues. Some, such as the Gallatin Valley Land Trust, are focused on land, water, and trails. Others are devoted to types of animals or fish, for example the Predator Conservation Alliance. In addition, several national organizations have local offices here. Each of these organizations is […]

The BP gusher fouling the Gulf of Mexico, and ultimately much more, is surely one of America’s greatest environmental disasters. Just as surely, it’s not President Obama’s fault. Rather, it’s a function of physics and probabilities. Similar although smaller events occur approximately every 20 years. Union Oil’s Santa Barbara oil spill began on January 28th, […]

As the spill in the Gulf of Mexico drags on I’ve received several emails asking me to punish BP by boycotting the purchase of its gasoline. The idea is that by reducing demand for BP’s gas, BP will see a drop in profits. I understand (and sympathize with) the angst driving this strategy, but it […]