This issue of The Freeman revisits the Populist movement as a root source of American interventionism, tracing how its inflationary schemes, class-based politics, and demands for state management still echo in modern policy. It examines why economic freedom must underlie all other liberties, critiques “social-democracy’s” tendency to empower favored groups at the expense of civil rights, and analyzes public resentment toward ticket scalping as a case study in envy and misunderstood markets. Additional articles explore the political limits of cutting government budgets, lessons drawn from Soviet repression, proposals for market-based monetary reform, and the unseen harms of subsidy programs. Book reviews cover topics from welfare-state overreach to medical regulation and democratic theory.
