A video explaining one of the grossly underappreciated facts of history. Hunter gatherer societies were hugely violent, the rate of violent death being some 20 times even that of the 20th century. Long but well worth it.

Help out an economics professor. Try a 150 word essay on “When Did Life for the Poor Get Better?” suitable for 5 year olds. After that we’ll work on the simpler version for journalists.

Similarly simple wisdom: boosting renewable energy would be better achieved not by subsidy but by dismantling regulation.

A bold claim: socialism works. The caveat? Only when you know their names.

Naomi Klein gets very confused on this point, on when and whether socialism works, Megan McArdle tries to put her straight.

Health insurance is one of the big things being argued over in this American election season. The only problem is that everyone seems to be starting from the wrong number.

And finally, we might have found the cause of the credit crunch. Does anyone know how much of the City has upgraded to Excel 2007? (And wouldn’t that be a product liability suit to enjoy?)

From Adam Smith Institute

Tags: Libertarian, Politics, Liberty, Freedom