The Americanization of Japan

Norman Barry (norman.barry@buckingham.ac.uk) is a professor of social and political theory at the University of Buckingham, UK, the country’s only private university. Although it was an up-and-down 2006 for the Japanese economy, there have been signs of an emergence from its long recession. Unlike previous recoveries that proved short-lived, this one shows every indication of [...]

The Passing of a Libertarian Activist: Chris Tame (1949-2006)

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Arthur Seldon’s Contribution to Freedom

Some politicians, so important today, are forgotten by next year. Events that seem so cataclysmic in our own times are soon but distant memories. But the great ideas live on long after their authors’ death. We must put into that category the work of Arthur Seldon—cofounder, with Lord Harris of High Cross, of the Institute [...]

Capitalism: Still on Trial

It was not enough to defeat communism and cause all socialists to rethink their anti-capitalist strategy. Still the private-property market system is under sustained attack from the left. But this time the opposition has a more profitable approach. The aim is no longer to socialize everything, but to subject capitalism to a prolonged ethical assault. [...]

Estonia Moves to Liberty

Contributing editor Norman Barry (norman.barry@buckingham.ac.uk) is professor of social and political theory at the University of Buckingham in the U.K. He is the author of An Introduction to Modern Political Theory (St. Martin’s) and Business Ethics (Macmillan). We have read a lot about former Soviet regimes struggling to shake off the last remnants of communism. [...]

The Loss of a Scholar: Marjorie Grice-Hutchinson

On April 12 the free-market tradition lost an important scholar with the death, in Málaga, Spain, of Marjorie Grice-Hutchinson. She was 93.

Although English-born she spent much of her life in Spain and made the study of that country’s history and intellectual tradition her life’s work. Her reconstruction of its liberal past was unparalleled.

What’s So Good About Democracy?

It was once said that “democracy is the most promiscuous word in the language; she is everybody’s mistress.” Indeed, political regimes of widely differing institutional features label themselves democracies, as did totalitarian communist orders. Often, the best guide to a country’s democratic credentials was that it didn’t call itself democratic: compare West Germany’s Federal Republic with the East German Democratic Republic.

The Theory of the Corporation

Ever a topic of dispute for observers of capitalism, the corporation has been undergoing increased scrutiny in the light of current business scandals. While other forms of capitalist enterprise, such as partnerships and single proprietorships, have avoided some of the wrath of socialist agitators, the limited-liability corporation, public or private, has had to endure the [...]

Dworkin’s Unbounded Legalism

For a number of reasons, libertarians should be interested in the legal philosophy of Ronald Dworkin.1 Of course, he is a leftist who seeks to implement the American "liberal" agenda through judicial activity. But it is not often realized that the legal doctrine that underlies this is not much different from classical liberalism. He believes [...]