Religion & Liberty Online Archives

Economics

October 05, 2018

D.C. restaurants fight back: When workers oppose a higher minimum wage

Last June, Washington, D.C. residents voted to pass Initiative 77, a ballot measure that raised the minimum wage for all restaurant workers, including those making tips. Driven by Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC United), the policy was meant to ensure that “that no one has to experience the financial insecurity…that comes with being forced to live off tips.” Continue Reading...
September 28, 2018

The failure of ‘good intentions’ in America’s entitlement state

Amid the flurry of anti-poverty activism gone wrong, we are routinely reminded that good intentions aren’t enough. Although the motives of our hearts often serve as fuel for positive transformation, our corresponding efforts also require reason, wisdom, discernment, and a healthy recognition of real-world ripple effects and constraints. Continue Reading...
September 26, 2018

Cuba’s doctor rebellion: ‘You get tired of being a slave’

“You are trained in Cuba and our education is free. Health care is free, but at what price? You wind up paying for it your whole life.” –Dr. Yaili Jiménez Gutierrez In 2013, the World Health Organization brokered a deal through which Cuba would export doctors to Brazil to serve in its poorest and most remote areas. Continue Reading...
September 13, 2018

Post-industrial economics: Studying human action in an age of intangibles

As society completes its transition into the Age of Information, economists are struggling to identify the drivers and develop their predictive models accordingly. Alas, as businesses continue to grow and evolve more rapidly, and as the corresponding systems continue to increase in complexity, many economists still view individuals and businesses as mostly static and reactionary. Continue Reading...
August 29, 2018

Conquering famine: 3 reasons global hunger is on the decline

In confronting the problem of global hunger, Western activists, planners, and foreign aid “experts” are prone to look only toward various forms of economic redistribution. Even among nonprofits, churches, and missions organizations, we see an overly narrow focus on temporary needs and material donations with little attention to individual empowerment and institutional reforms. Continue Reading...
August 24, 2018

The power of story in the economic imagination

In his 1958 essay, “I, Pencil,” Leonard Read took up the voice of a self-reflective pencil to tell a fictional tale that illuminated the nonfictional marvels of mundane economic cooperation. The essay went on to influence the hearts and minds of many, thanks in part to Read’s insightful mind, but also to his chosen medium: the story. Continue Reading...