An Irish Return to Order

Return to Order An Irish Return to Order 1

Dublin’s Buswell Hotel seemed a fitting place to launch the book, Return to Order. The atmosphere inside the conference room that July 25, was restrained, somewhat formal yet also inviting. Buswell’s is a traditional hotel right in the city center with the Parliament building just across the street and Trinity College nearby. One could almost … Read more

A Definition of an Economist

Return to Order A Definition of an Economist 2

  “An economist is someone who sees something happen in practice and wonders if it could work in theory”— Ronald Reagan   Quoted from the 2013 book, It Didn’t Have to Be This Way: Why Boom and Bust is Unnecessary—and How the Austrian School of Economics Breaks the Cycle, by Harry C. Veryster.  

Getting Off the “Sequester” Roller Coaster

When I think of the debate around the “sequester,” I think of an amusement park. I know that this is no laughing matter, but there’s something so incredibly unreal about the situation that an amusement park is what comes into mind. This comes from observing how things like quantitative easing, derivative instruments and massive debt … Read more

The Debt We Carry

Just how serious is the government debt of nations? Consider the following statistics. The International Monetary Fund’s 2012 figures find the gross government debt of Greece to be around 153 per cent of GDP. Other nations include Italy where the figure is 123, for Ireland 113, for Portugal 112 and for the United States 107. … Read more

Can the Free Market Compete on a Free Market?

Return to Order The World Is Not Flat 2

Some believe that a simple solution to all our economic problems is to unfetter markets and everything will enter into order. Take away visible restraints and invisible hands will work their magic. The problem with such an outlook is that it has proven illusive. There have been relatively free sectors of modern economy. However, problems … Read more

Book Signing in Dundalk, Ireland

Return to Order Book Signing in Dundalk, Ireland 3

On July 20, there was a book signing in Dundalk, Ireland near the border with Northern Ireland. It was the first stop of the book tour which will cover most of the island.

What is the Purpose of Human Life?

Return to Order What is the Purpose of Human Life? 2

Modern men would hold that the purpose of life is to possess and enjoy an abundance of material goods. Such a materialistic view of life is to make economics the primary concern of men. Saint Thomas Aquinas holds that the purpose of human life in an organic Christian society is much different. The individual has … Read more

From the Mail: Is There a Conspiracy?

Return to Order Letter Protests Misrepresentation of Great Generation

I received an email with a very interesting question from a reader of Return to Order. It occurred to me that others might have similar questions. The question can be summed up like this: Have you seriously considered the possibility of a web of conspiracy behind our visible government that directs many of the financial … Read more

When Choice Hurts

Return to Order When Choice Hurts 2

Many people revel in the fact that they enjoy unlimited choices, especially in expanding possibilities using the Internet. These choices seem to make all the world accessible. However, the human mind is not made to deal with such a vast array of choices. It often causes overload and frustration. “Unlimited choice,” notes sociologists Barry Schwatz, … Read more