Happy Birthday, Bastiat! By J. Bradley Jansen June 29, 2001 On June 29th, as we celebrate Claude Frederic Bastiat’s 200th birthday, we are also celebrating economic common sense. Perhaps more than any other economic commentator, Frederic Bastiat was able to reduce economic sophisms to their basic principles and follow them to their logical conclusions. This [...]
Civil Asset Theft J. Bradley Jansen June 21, 2001 Civil asset forfeiture is in the news again. The American Civil Liberties Union is running an advertising campaign on the issue. Their ad shows the recognizable “Uncle Sam Wants You” picture with a twist; he’s pointing a gun at us with a caption that reads: “I [...]
STATEMENT ON FINANCIAL PRIVACY REGARDING GRAMM-LEACH-BLILEY ACT June 20, 2001 We recognize the importance of privacy and are encouraged that many interest groups, politicians and businesses are also working to address this significant issue. Changes in the law, such as the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, as well as changes in regulation and technology mean that privacy will [...]
Are Fannie and Freddie really affordable? J. Bradley Jansen June 14, 2001 Congressional attempts to make housing more affordable may be misplaced. According to a recent GSE Report special supplement, “Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s UnAffordable Housing Goals,” the Congress may be squandering resources without really helping prospective homeowners. Trying to help consumers, Congress passed [...]
Information Exchange Dangers By J. Bradley Jansen June 7, 2001 The Internal Revenue Service posted a ruling for comment period that could have serious unintended consequences for the United States. Promulgated in the final days of the Clinton Administration, the IRS proposed a rule on the “Guidance on Reporting of Deposit Interest Paid to Nonresident [...]