Tag: Adam Smith

Commentary: The Endurance of an Ideological Paradox

Ohio Star Staff
Karl Marx / "How do you do, Fellow Kids" meme

I have written about the death and rebirth of socialism periodically over the years.  But as André Gide said in another context, “Toutes choses sont dites déjà, mais comme personne n’écoute, il faut toujours recommencer”: everything has already been said, but since no one was listening, it is necessary to say it again.

Really, the socialist impulse is a hardy perennial.  How could something so frequently and thoroughly discredited persist in the hearts of men?  Some think it has something to do with the gullibility of the human animal, some (but I repeat myself) with the persistence of the utopian dream.  I suspect there are many explanations, of which the raw desire for power plays an unedifying but also underrated role.  I also favor the explanatory power of original sin, which has profound psychological as well as theological application to many of the more farcical aspects of human experience and what is more farcical than socialism?

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Commentary: The Reason Some Diamond Brands So Expensive

Ohio Star Staff
Diamond Ring

One of my first full-time jobs outside of college was working in the jewelry industry at Harry Winston in Manhattan. The experience I gained as a sales assistant, working at the historical house of Winston, expanded my understanding of the power of a brand.

The amount of money customers would spend on a Harry Winston diamond, while scoffing at what was down the street at Tiffany’s, seemed absurd. I was on a yearly salary of $35k, and people were dropping more than that amount on a tennis bracelet with less than 30 minutes of deliberation.

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Commentary: On Independence Day, Remember Why Economic Liberty Matters for America

Admin

I’ve often thought there is something providential about the Declaration of Independence being drafted and promulgated throughout the American Colonies the same year that Adam Smith’s book “The Wealth of Nations” was published.

After all, both texts were revolutionary, and both were fundamentally concerned with protecting and promoting liberty.

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Commentary: It is Time to Fight for the Rights of Independent Businesses

Ohio Star Staff

As a very young man, I was fortunate enough to start my own company out of my apartment using a small amount of investment capital from friends and family. Over time, that business grew to have over 6,000 employees and revenues in excess of $2 billion. Over nearly a 40-year span, my team and I built what some would consider a remarkable track record, as measured by both sales and profits.

Because of my experience growing that business, I feel a special kinship with small, privately owned businesses and their owners. I also come from a middle-class background, one that shaped me into the person I am today. It is through both the lens of entrepreneur and member of the middle-class that I look through when reflecting upon this Independence Day.

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Adam Smith’s Grave Targeted by Pro-BLM Investigation

Ohio Star Staff

In Scotland, the gravesite and memorial of Adam Smith, the Enlightenment philosopher who is widely considered the father of modern capitalism, is now being targeted by local officials’ in an investigation over possible ties to “slavery and colonialism,” as reported by Breitbart.

The Edinburgh City Council launched a formal review of various statues, memorials, monuments, and other historical locations throughout the city in the aftermath of the far-left race riots last summer. The investigation is seeking any potential candidates for “removal or re-interpretation” if any of them are found to allegedly have ties to “racism and oppression.” The council consists almost entirely of members of left-wing parties, including the Labour Party and the Scottish National Party.

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