Essays & News

  In recent months, various developments, surprise announcements and newly revived initiatives have sparked controversy and debate globally concerning the implications of digital identification systems. Most recently, the United Kingdom made headlines when Prime Minister Keir Starmer in late September announced a mandatory digital identification (ID) scheme. He stated that the move was aimed at […]

  The gravest threat to Europe is neither Russia nor migration. It is internal: a loss of confidence in its own civilization. No army can defend a society that no longer believes in itself. While a delegation from the United States negotiates with Moscow over a potential peace settlement in Ukraine – without European participation – the […]

  Taxes and tariffs are—unsurprisingly—a major topic for economists. On one hand, they generate huge inefficiencies, deadweight losses, and perverse incentives; on the other hand, they reveal the fascinating creativity with which entrepreneurs find ways to avoid these costs. Sometimes in a quite amusing way. Let’s look at a few examples from not-too-distant history. Wall […]

  Over the past two years, European policymakers have embraced the term “de-risking” to describe the continent’s recalibrated relationship with China. While the European Union considered China a “systemic rival” in 2019, the bloc no longer seeks full “decoupling,” but aims to reduce exposure in sectors deemed strategic for security and competitiveness. The underlying concern […]

  George Bush, then a presidential candidate, famously said at the 1988 Republican National Convention in New Orleans: “read my lips: no new taxes”. The pledge not to tax the American people further was not kept. In 1990, faced with a growing budget deficit, Bush signed the Budget Reconciliation Act, which included increases of the […]