Archive for Hans F. Sennholz
Machiavellian Politics
The morality of an action depends upon the motive from which we act. If we deny ourselves for the benefit of a needy person, we may experience the joys of charity. If we seek to impress our friends, we may act from ostentation and pride. If we seize income and wealth from some people and [...]
1Feb1996 | Hans F. Sennholz | 4 comments | ContinuedRuinous Litigation
In Glendale, California, a couple recently filed a malpractice suit against a church, alleging that incompetent pastoral counseling had led to a suicide. The case was dismissed in the end because the ministers had taken no money for their counseling. But it also suggested that church-sponsored counselors who charge fees may become the targets of [...]
1Jan1996 | Hans F. Sennholz | 0 comments | ContinuedLove and Envy
Love and envy probably are the most bewitching of all emotions. Love blinds all men alike, both the wise and the foolish. Envy sharpens our eyes although it is a timid and shameful passion to which we dare not confess. Being unequal in ability, industry, and the rewards of our labors, we let the vice [...]
1Dec1995 | Hans F. Sennholz | 0 comments | ContinuedCounting Our Blessings
Criticism is said to be a basic amusement in which we like to indulge. We are quick to point out the faults of others, denounce their views, and decry their blunders. We enjoy lamenting the state of affairs, bewailing public policies, raising our voices against legislators and regulators, and deploring their motives and misunderstandings. We [...]
1Nov1995 | Hans F. Sennholz | 0 comments | ContinuedMisplaced Hope
The welfare state thrives on the toils and talents of its productive members. It is an exploitation state that builds on political force and, in the end, is bound to self-destruct. When confiscatory taxation and onerous regulation become intolerable and the abuses of government are insufferable, many good citizens rise up on election day and [...]
1Oct1995 | Hans F. Sennholz | 0 comments | ContinuedA $5 Trillion National Debt
By the time you read these lines the debt of the federal government will have passed the $5 trillion mark. Does it surpass your imagination and ability just to write the number? How many digits does it take? Are you aroused and alarmed about the ever-rising debt? Many Americans are fearful that it will lead [...]
1Sep1995 | Hans F. Sennholz | 8 comments | ContinuedProtectionism, Old and New
Protectionism, which is the policy of protecting home industries from foreign competition, has many origins. Some date back to the ways of tribal societies which generally viewed foreigners as aliens and enemies. Others are singularly American, arising from economic stagnation and dollar decline. All are the result of misinformation which is more harmful than non-information. [...]
1Aug1995 | Hans F. Sennholz | 0 comments | ContinuedDegenerate Democracy
When all the mysticism is stripped away, the people who comprise the government (the legislators, administrators, judges, and policemen), are guided by human interests, desires, beliefs, notions, and prejudices, just like other people. They have neither superhuman wisdom nor extraordinary virtue. Nevertheless, they are expected to render an important service: to protect the life and [...]
1Jul1995 | Hans F. Sennholz | 0 comments | ContinuedAffirmative Action
In the strange world of politics and power, one agency of government inflicts economic harm on the public, another seeks to alleviate it. One raises the costs of construction through labor laws or zoning restrictions, another seeks to offset the raises through construction grants, low-interest loans, and subsidized rents. Federal legislation erects employment barriers for [...]
1Jun1995 | Hans F. Sennholz | 3 comments | ContinuedWoeful Bankers
An old Christian saying warns us not to make money our god, for it will plague us like the devil. Based on this maxim, a few economists admonish us not to place politicians in charge of our money, for they will plague us worse than the devil. Most Americans take heed of the first warning, [...]
1May1995 | Hans F. Sennholz | 2 comments | ContinuedBudget Deficits
An old English proverb may help us understand the nature of debt; "A small debt makes a man your debtor, a large debt makes him your enemy." When the national debt amounted to just a few million dollars, the federal government was a gracious debtor, a protector of all its subjects, enjoying public trust and [...]
1Apr1995 | Hans F. Sennholz | 2 comments | ContinuedMinimum Wages
Few economic laws, if any, are more malicious and malignant than minimum wage laws. They prohibit workers from accepting employment unless they are paid at least the minimum. They order employers to use only workers who qualify for the minimum and reject all others. The laws erect a hurdle over which all American workers are [...]
1Mar1995 | Hans F. Sennholz | 0 comments | ContinuedNotes from FEE: Social Security
Politicians love it because it buys votes and re-elections. They fear it because it may spell defeat and ruin to those who dare to question its meaning and reflect upon its consequences. It raises all kinds of political double-talkers who falter every time it is merely mentioned. Social Security was born of politics as a [...]
1Feb1995 | Hans F. Sennholz | 0 comments | ContinuedNotes from FEE: Repeal, Repeal, Repeal
Even if the course of the Federal Juggernaut does not change significantly in the coming months, we are pleased to see a change of drivers. The reins of power when held for long periods of time breed inefficiency, arrogance, corruption, and many other vices. To change the drivers is to recondition the monster and make [...]
1Jan1995 | Hans F. Sennholz | 0 comments | ContinuedNotes from FEE
Ambivalent Voters Most Americans sense that something is wrong. They have an eerie feeling about the federal government spending hundreds of billions of dollars it does not have and owing a debt of trillions of dollars. After all, in their personal lives they learned very early that what they don’t owe won’t hurt them. He [...]
1Dec1992 | Hans F. Sennholz | 0 comments | ContinuedNotes from FEE
A Bubble Economy The new dip in economic activity raises some excruciating questions. Is it merely an unimportant blip on the computer screen, a brief weakness on the way to a robust recovery? Or is it an early signal of more stagnation and unemployment? Could it be a symptom of fundamental debility rather than just [...]
1Nov1992 | Hans F. Sennholz | 0 comments | ContinuedNotes from FEE
Government No man has ever seen a government. Even legislators, regulators, and tax collectors who live in the midst of government have never seen it. Yet most people treat it as a concrete entity which has real individual existence. They petition it, beseech it, idolize it, pay homage to it, and bow down to it. [...]
1Oct1992 | Hans F. Sennholz | 0 comments | Continued-
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