How do enduring ideas about liberty map on to modern economic and political realities? This week’s articles confront that question, from the birth of The Wealth of Nations to today’s policy missteps.

As America fought for its independence, another revolution took place in 1776. Donald J. Boudreaux writes about Adam Smith’s “system of natural liberty” as a catalyst for economic freedoms.

Ivan Eland critiques the aimless goals of the Trump Administration’s war in Iran, emphasizing that military dominance isn’t the same thing as victory.

Scott Beyer explains how local chambers have shifted their mission and are increasingly trading “regulatory pushback” for “public-private partnerships.” In a separate piece, Beyer also details how a wave of post-2008 regulations, intended to stabilize the system, has inadvertently pushed trillions of dollars into the “shadows” of private credit.

When gas prices spike, or eggs get expensive, we’re quick to blame “inflation.” But Kristian Fors argues that conflating supply-chain hiccups with monetary policy lets the Federal Reserve off the hook. Fors also writes how the bipartisan bill, the ROAD to Housing Act, will greatly sabotage efforts to increase the nation’s housing stock.

Finally, Caleb Petitt argues that the recent suspension of the Jones Act, a century-old law mandating that domestic cargo be carried on U.S.-built and crewed ships, proves that “national security” justifications were always a mirage.

Enjoy.

Jonathan Hofer
Managing Editor