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Culture War Roundup for the week of July 28, 2025

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In my latest essay, I try to list the major points I'm aware of that puncture the progressive narrative on economics, without trying to directly touch on the Culture War's social fronts.

Reality Has a Poorly Recognized Classical Liberal Bias

I think most people here have enough exposure to libertarianism that they are at least aware of these issues (even if they don't agree with them). If you think I missed one or I'm somehow dead wrong please do indicate so.

  1. Poverty: capitalism works, redistribution doesn’t (or worse)
  2. Cost of living/services: Due to government subsidizing demand and restricting supply
  3. Welfare: Unfair redistribution
  4. Labor rights: Due to economic growth and competition, not unions
  5. The New Deal: Prolonged the Great Depression
  6. Rust Belt decline: Automation and unions, not free trade
  7. Europe: Low growth and health and pension crises
  8. Progressive governance: High spending and bad results

Did I miss anything? Which ones do you disagree with? I am not sure about 6: it could still be that a dollar that is too strong (expensive) harms exports. The problem there is still not the free market, rather underprovision of dollars in global markets.

Good work I'd say. Thank you.

For 6, I don't believe the dollar's relative value is a major issue for decades of trends.

Re #6 - Indeed.

However, only one major trading partner artificially keeps their currency undervalued - in order to stimulate inward investment at the expense of its own purchasing power on the open market (China).

I think it was Trace who mentioned recently that, for all the growth China has experienced, it still greatly lags behind what it could have been if it followed the example of any of the other Tiger economies.