CLibertyC

Extra! Extra! New daily papers arrive as Myanmar lifts press monopoly

"Privately owned daily newspapers hit Myanmar’s streets for the first time in decades on Monday under new freedoms that represent a revolution for a media shackled under military rule. Four Burmese-language titles — The Voice, The Golden Fresh Land, The Union and The Standard Time — made the transition from weekly as new rules came into effect that swept away state media’s long monopoly on daily printing. The country’s military rulers seized control of private daily papers in 1964, according to veteran journalist Thiha Saw of Open News weekly." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingExtra! Extra! New daily papers arrive as Myanmar lifts press monopoly

Amazon asks for laxer online shopping rules in India

"US online retail giant Amazon said Tuesday it had asked New Delhi to consider relaxing a law that stops its Indian subsidiary from selling directly to customers. The topic was raised when Paul Misener, Amazon’s global vice president, met Indian Trade Minister Anand Sharma in New Delhi. Last year the Indian government eased legislation to allow foreign retailers such as US supermarket giant Wal-Mart to set up shop in India and sell directly to Indian consumers but online retailers were left out." Continue reading →

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The Luddites Among Us

"Luddite reasoning rests on this assumption: individuals who act in their own self-interest to buy lower-cost goods are acting against the interests of the nation. This was the argument of the mercantilists in the late 17th century. It was this argument that Adam Smith criticized in The Wealth of Nations. This is the essence of all systems of government interference into the economy. It says that politicians know better what is good for the nation than individuals do. It says that customers, who act individually to pursue their own ends as inexpensively as they can, are totally misguided. As individuals, they are making decisions that undermine their own wealth." Continue reading →

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Wild and Free: The Libertarian Philosophy of Henry David Thoreau

"Many people seem to have an idea of an isolated, possibly misanthropic hermit who would disapprove of anyone who came near his secluded home. And if they find out that he did not live in the middle of nowhere, which he never claimed to, then he gets branded a big phony. Sometimes a big deal is made of him having meals with his family in Concord, but considering Thoreau’s contributions to the family pencil-making business over his lifetime, his obvious skill at craftsmanship, and the meals that he served visitors at Walden, his alleged mooching appears to actually be a sign of social involvement and reciprocity." Continue reading →

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Shakespeare shown as ruthless businessman

"Hoarder, moneylender, tax dodger - it's not how we usually think of William Shakespeare. But we should, according to a group of academics who say the Bard was a ruthless businessman who grew wealthy dealing in grain during a time of famine. Researchers from Aberystwyth University in Wales argue we can't fully understand Shakespeare unless we study his often-overlooked business savvy. One said that oversight is the product of 'a willful ignorance on behalf of critics and scholars who I think - perhaps through snobbery - cannot countenance the idea of a creative genius also being motivated by self-interest'." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingShakespeare shown as ruthless businessman

Shakespeare shown as ruthless businessman

"Hoarder, moneylender, tax dodger - it's not how we usually think of William Shakespeare. But we should, according to a group of academics who say the Bard was a ruthless businessman who grew wealthy dealing in grain during a time of famine. Researchers from Aberystwyth University in Wales argue we can't fully understand Shakespeare unless we study his often-overlooked business savvy. One said that oversight is the product of 'a willful ignorance on behalf of critics and scholars who I think - perhaps through snobbery - cannot countenance the idea of a creative genius also being motivated by self-interest'." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingShakespeare shown as ruthless businessman

A millionaire, a market crash and a murder

"He may have been dubbed the founding father of economics, but, when he was alive 300 years ago, banker Richard Cantillon drew the fury of angry investors who lost money in schemes he had recommended. He was jailed briefly, but emerged with the millions he made from share dealing and currency speculation intact. Sound horribly familiar? Cantillon was the first to use the term 'entrepreneur', describing the vital role of risk-takers and speculators in generating economic growth. He practised what he preached, and the financial risks he took made him one of the wealthiest men in the Europe of his day." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingA millionaire, a market crash and a murder

A millionaire, a market crash and a murder

"He may have been dubbed the founding father of economics, but, when he was alive 300 years ago, banker Richard Cantillon drew the fury of angry investors who lost money in schemes he had recommended. He was jailed briefly, but emerged with the millions he made from share dealing and currency speculation intact. Sound horribly familiar? Cantillon was the first to use the term 'entrepreneur', describing the vital role of risk-takers and speculators in generating economic growth. He practised what he preached, and the financial risks he took made him one of the wealthiest men in the Europe of his day." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingA millionaire, a market crash and a murder

Great Scientist ≠ Good at Math

"Many of the most successful scientists in the world today are mathematically no more than semiliterate. Pioneers in science only rarely make discoveries by extracting ideas from pure mathematics. Most of the stereotypical photographs of scientists studying rows of equations on a blackboard are instructors explaining discoveries already made. Real progress comes in the field writing notes, at the office amid a litter of doodled paper, in the hallway struggling to explain something to a friend, or eating lunch alone. Eureka moments require hard work. And focus. Ideas in science emerge most readily when some part of the world is studied for its own sake." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGreat Scientist ≠ Good at Math

Great Scientist ≠ Good at Math

"Many of the most successful scientists in the world today are mathematically no more than semiliterate. Pioneers in science only rarely make discoveries by extracting ideas from pure mathematics. Most of the stereotypical photographs of scientists studying rows of equations on a blackboard are instructors explaining discoveries already made. Real progress comes in the field writing notes, at the office amid a litter of doodled paper, in the hallway struggling to explain something to a friend, or eating lunch alone. Eureka moments require hard work. And focus. Ideas in science emerge most readily when some part of the world is studied for its own sake." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGreat Scientist ≠ Good at Math