Antiwar Radio with Scott Horton » Economics

Eric Phillips

Scott Horton — Sun, 11 Mar 2012 05:08:15 +0000

Eric Phillips, writer and graduate student in economic history, discusses his article “Military Spending and Bastiat’s ‘Unseen;’” the opportunity costs (in terms of dollars and innovation) when money is taken from the private sector and spent on national defense; why frightened Americans support enormous military budgets far in excess of what’s needed for defensive purposes; Obama’s defense “cuts” that are just reducing the rate of increase; and the high unemployment rate for young veterans, despite election year jobs programs targeted specifically for them.

MP3 here. (20:15)

Eric Phillips is a writer from Philadelphia, currently studying economic history in graduate school. He is the founder of the blog Notes & Observations. His articles have been featured on Mises.org, LewRockwell.com, EconomicPolicyJournal.com, and in Taki’s Magazine.

Robert P. Murphy

Scott Horton — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 05:01:16 +0000

Robert P. Murphy, author of The Politically Incorrect Guide to Capitalism, discusses his article “The Economics of War;” how open markets and free trade make expansionist states and war unnecessary; a cost/benefit analysis of empire and “war for oil;” and the $15 trillion US debt (a trillion here, a trillion there, and soon you’re talking real money).

MP3 here. (22:47)

Robert P. Murphy is an adjunct scholar of the Mises Institute, where he teaches at the Mises Academy. He runs the blog Free Advice and is the author of The Politically Incorrect Guide to Capitalism, The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Great Depression and the New Deal, and his newest book, Lessons for the Young Economist.

Andrew Bacevich

Scott Horton — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 05:34:45 +0000

Andrew Bacevich, Professor of International Relations at Boston University and author of The Short American Century: A Postmortem, discusses his article “The Passing of the Postwar Era;” the major factors leading to a “transformative” decline in US power and prestige on the world stage; the American political elites who are driving the country into a ditch; the redundancy or counter-productivity of overseas bases (excepting the Asia Pacific region); and the lack of “prudent” decision making in Washington D.C.

MP3 here. (10:18)

Andrew J. Bacevich is Professor of International Relations and History at Boston University. A graduate of the U.S. Military Academy, he received his PhD in American Diplomatic History from Princeton University. Before joining the faculty of Boston University, he taught at West Point and Johns Hopkins.

Bacevich is the author of Washington Rules: America’s Path to Permanent War (2010). His previous books include The Limits of Power: The End of American Exceptionalism (2008); The Long War: A New History of US National Security Policy since World War II (2007) (editor); The New American Militarism: How Americans Are Seduced by War (2005); and American Empire: The Realities and Consequences of U. S. Diplomacy (2002). His essays and reviews have appeared in a variety of scholarly and general interest publications including The Wilson Quarterly, The National Interest, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, The Nation, and The New Republic. His op-eds have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Boston Globe, and Los Angeles Times, among other newspapers.

In 2004, Dr. Bacevich was a Berlin Prize Fellow at the American Academy in Berlin. He has also held fellowships at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, the John F. Kennedy School of Government, and the Council on Foreign Relations.

Charles Goyette

Scott Horton — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 05:17:00 +0000

Charles Goyette, former Antiwar Radio host and author of the upcoming new book Red and Blue and Broke All Over: Restoring America’s Free Economy, discusses why America’s economic and political problems can’t be solved until the red-blue paradigm is rejected; irreconcilable economic headlines where consumer spending is up while income drops – and nobody asks why; why the demand (Keynes) and supply-siders (Friedman) are two sides of the same government monetary intervention coin; a summary of the global debt crisis and European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF); the other PIIGS countries teetering on insolvency while Greek rescue plans founder; how “military Keynesianism” has bankrupted the US; the intertwined fates of US empire and the dollar; and why Americans prefer a stern father-figure for president, even one as clueless as Herman Cain.

MP3 here. (34:08)

Charles Goyette was a longtime award winning morning drive-time radio host from Phoenix, AZ. He is a libertarian commentator, who is noted for his outspoken anti-war views, his opposition to the war in Iraq, and his economic commentary. He is the author of the book The Dollar Meltdown: Surviving the Impending Currency Crisis with Gold, Oil, and Other Unconventional Investments.)

Will Grigg

Scott Horton — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 04:59:21 +0000

Will Grigg, blogger and author of Liberty in Eclipse, discusses why the American Dream is collapsing; the dollar’s rapid decline since leaving the (partial) gold standard in 1971; keeping the fiat currency game going by waging war – the biggest public works/jobs stimulus program imaginable; how the dollar’s reserve currency status, solidified by dollar denominated oil sales, has let the US expand its empire far beyond sustainability; and why economic troubles often prompt people to scapegoat minorities, rather than directing their anger toward the actual causes.

MP3 here. (25:52)

Will Grigg writes the blog Pro Libertate and is the author of Liberty in Eclipse.

Charles Goyette

Scott Horton — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 03:56:13 +0000

Charles Goyette, author and former Antiwar Radio co-contributor, discusses his upcoming new book Red and Blue and Broke All Over: Restoring America’s Free Economy; the “cocaine theory” of economic stimulus; why the bond market bubble – the biggest one yet – has to pop someday; how the US dollar’s weakness is masked by the simultaneous devaluation of all the world’s fiat currencies; why the first major country to institute a gold-backed currency will dominate global finance; why it’s no coincidence the most innovative, cost-competitive industries have the least government intervention; and why economic central planning in a country of 300+ million people is doomed to failure.

MP3 here. (32:45)

Sheldon Richman

Scott Horton — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 06:06:20 +0000

Sheldon Richman, senior fellow at The Future of Freedom Foundation, discusses his article “9/11 and the National Security Scam;” why top government officials must know their policies provoke more terrorist attacks, rather than prevent them; hearty cheers at the GOP debate for Rick Perry’s record-setting execution pace as Texas Governor; the cynical use of 9/11 casualties to justify an increasingly ruthless foreign policy; why “macro measures” like GNP and the unemployment rate are poor measures of national wealth and success; and why we must press the fight against the common perception that war is good for the economy.

MP3 here. (41:45)

Sheldon Richman is editor of The Freeman, published by The Foundation for Economic Education in Irvington, New York, and serves as senior fellow at The Future of Freedom Foundation. He is the author of FFF’s award-winning book Separating School & State: How to Liberate America’s Families; Your Money or Your Life: Why We Must Abolish the Income Tax; and FFF’s newest book Tethered Citizens: Time to Repeal the Welfare State.

Calling for the abolition, not the reform, of public schooling. Separating School & State has become a landmark book in both libertarian and educational circles. In his column in the Financial Times, Michael Prowse wrote: “I recommend a subversive tract, Separating School & State by Sheldon Richman of the Cato Institute, a Washington think tank… . I also think that Mr. Richman is right to fear that state education undermines personal responsibility…”

Mr. Richman’s articles on population, federal disaster assistance, international trade, education, the environment, American history, foreign policy, privacy, computers, and the Middle East have appeared in the Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, American Scholar, Chicago Tribune, USA Today, Washington Times, Insight, Cato Policy Report, Journal of Economic Development, The Freeman, The World & I, Reason, Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, Middle East Policy, Liberty magazine, and other publications. He is a contributor to the Fortune Encyclopedia of Economics.

A former newspaper reporter and former senior editor at the Cato Institute, Mr. Richman is a graduate of Temple University in Philadelphia.

Lew Rockwell

Scott Horton — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 06:32:51 +0000

Lew Rockwell, founder and Chairman of the Ludwig von Mises Institute, discusses the consistently excellent moral and political record of Ron Paul throughout the years; why a foreign policy “Golden Rule” works best; the wisdom of cutting war spending before domestic entitlements during an economic crisis; the essentially (soft) fascistic US economic system of today; and whether or not public office can be the mechanism to reign in government excesses (in case of a successful 2012 Ron Paul presidential run).

MP3 here. (20:11)

Lew Rockwell is the founder and Chairman of the Ludwig von Mises Institute in Auburn, Alabama, Vice President of the Center for Libertarian Studies in Burlingame, California, and publisher of the political Web site LewRockwell.com. He is the author of The Left, The Right and The State and served as Ron Paul’s congressional chief of staff between 1978 and 1982. Check out his podcast show here.

Gareth Porter

Scott Horton — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 05:17:56 +0000

Gareth Porter, independent historian and journalist for IPS News, discusses his article “Obama Leaves Door Open to Long-Term US Afghan Combat;” the “lunatic warmonger” Republicans who reversed course after hearing the “end the wars” demands of their constituents; how Obama essentially traded the domestic Democratic political agenda for the Afghan surge; how, despite the minimal drawdown, David Petraeus got almost everything he wanted; the hubris of Robert Gates, who had no idea the US national security state could be subject to economic limits; and why US strategy in Afghanistan is best described as praying for a miracle.

MP3 here. (20:06)

Gareth Porter is an independent historian and journalist. He is the author of Perils of Dominance: Imbalance of Power and the Road to War in Vietnam. His articles appear on Counterpunch, Huffington Post, Inter Press Service News Agency and Antiwar.com.

Charles Goyette

Scott Horton — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 10:16:05 +0000

Charles Goyette, former Antiwar Radio co-contributor and author of The Dollar Meltdown : Surviving the Impending Currency Crisis with Gold, Oil, and Other Unconventional Investments, discusses his LRC article “Obama Gets it Half Right,” the diminishing returns of government “stimulus” deficit spending, Bernanke’s additional job duty: juice up the stock market, why we need higher interest rates (but the decision and power to do so should not be centrally planned), the Fed as last buyer of Treasury debt, and now the largest holder, and the foreign policy implications of bad economic policy: increased militarism by desperate politicians trying to distract the public from the actual problems.

MP3 here. (19:56)