Whitney gets quoted

"Down and Out in Washington, D.C." is an article in the new edition of Doublethink magazine and describes the increasingly bleak job and economic outlook for conservatives and libertarians in D.C. Not a big deal, but here's my two cents thrown to the article:

Whitney Garrison, a donor relations associate for the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, attended a meeting for free-market fundraisers (including the Institute for Justice, the Leadership Institute, and the Institute for Humane Studies) sponsored by the Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation last December.

Speaker John Von Kannon, vice president of the Heritage Foundation, told the assembly that direct mail is more crucial now than ever before. While major donors may be hurting financially and cutting back on their giving, direct mail donors—those who give $1,000 or less—tend to be lagging indicators of recessions, largely unaffected by changes in the market.

Von Kannon was “optimistic,” Garrison says, “but everyone else was pretty quiet, perhaps even hesitant to agree … Nearly everyone said direct mail returns are diminishing.”

It's official, I'm going to China!

I made my deposit, booked my airfare (surprisingly cheap - only $850), and submitted my Visa paperwork today in person. It's official - I'm going - May 16-31st!!!

Here's my kickass itinerary. So I'm flying in and out of Shanghai and I'm getting to Shanghai 2 days before the program starts in Beijing. Should I fly or take a train there? Any suggestions for what to do in Shanghai/Beijing in my limited free time? Let me know!

The People's Stimulus

From my friend, Michelle:

A moment of levity

Brilliant storytelling.

What is a public good?

This is a basic economic question that warrants discussion. It's subjective and even people within the same party might disagree. Will Wilkinson points out that this crisis would have been a wonderful opportunity to have a substantive debate about what should determine spending on public works, but for the sake of expediency we're skipping that step. Expediency? When most of these programs won't go online until 2010?!

Unlike some libertarians, I do think government has a legitimate role to play in a lot of society. I don't want to just outsource everything to the private sector (especially if privatization really means playing favorites amongst a few elite government contracting firms). According to the Constitution, Congress can make laws to provide for the general welfare. The problem is in the definition of general welfare. I think that there's a case for the federal government to invest in basic infrastructure especially when it promotes interstate commerce (i.e. waterways and highways). The federal government also needs to make sure we're safe. I also think that the government should subsidize (but not necessarily run) schools, libraries, and other educational institutions like museums. The point is - all of this should be up for discussion. If only there was a reputable, high-profile Republican who could frame the debate!

Let them eat cake

If I were the economic czar of America, I'd pull a Marie Antoinette and tell Wall Street and other irresponsible and insolvent banks to make lemonade out of lemons or die a slow death by maintaining the status quo of stale bread and water. Wait, that analogy doesn't even hold because I believe it was the French government that gave them the stale bread to begin with. Perhaps the stale bread we gave Wall Street were the high corporate tax rates and regulations that impede their ability to thrive and survive. Regardless, I'd tell them to deal.

I've complained before about Americans coddling children to the point that they don't recognize or accept failure and thus responsibility as adults. Apparently this applies on the macro level as well. "Let Wall Street Fail" is a quick, insightful explanation of how Bernanke and Geithner (i.e. the government) are blowing it big time.

The market is light years ahead of the government problem-solvers in sorting out this mess.

The market knows what to do. Yes, that's anthropomorphizing an intangible entity, but wrap your head around it boys and girls. There's no way to aggregate enough timely and relevant information for the government to make the best buying and selling, hiring and firing, liquidating and investing decisions. This seems so fundamental that I feel like I'm banging my head against the wall. And why does no one seem to care that the stock market dips every time there is news of a bailout!? No, it's not because the bailout/buyout/stimulus isn't big enough - it's because investors DON"T LIKE THE BAILOUT! Why the media seems to blithely ignore the markets dips in conjunction with bailout news is beyond me. If I was more savvy with technology, I would try to track that and write one kickass policy brief on the media's negligent and biased oversight.

My talisman

My talisman has always been the Lord's Prayer. During times of stress and grief, I instinctively say the words over and over. In fact, I often have to slow myself down to concentrate on the words and their full meaning. It's my spiritual comfort blanket.

Amanda recommends Psalm 23. I'm also partial to the prayer of St. Francis which I have on a placard on my bathroom wall - one of those odd mementos I have from my great grandmother. The Serenity prayer is also a good standby.

Do you have a spiritual talisman?