We estimate the influence of defense spending and military labor use on economic growth in African and Latin American countries. Our model integrates disparate implications from the defense economics literature into a Barro-style model of economic growth that controls for political and economic...

The ideology of Progressivism that peaked in the early years of the 20th century brought with it the 16th amendment, which allowed the federal government to tax incomes, and the 17th amendment, which mandated direct elections of Senators. Both were ratified in 1913. The 16th amendment provided...

When tax shares can be included in political platforms, there will be a bias toward more government spending. This bias is the result of the fact that demand curves slope downward. Political parties can compete for votes by offering pivotal voters lower tax shares, but when they do, a lower...

James Buchanan advocated the market mechanism for allocating resources because it is based on voluntary exchange. People engage in market transactions only when they believe they benefit from doing so. Buchanan depicted the political process the same way. People engage in collective activities...

Erudite, accessible and lucidly written, this book provides both a stimulating introduction and excellent summary of the core principles, ideas and diversity of modern Austrian economics. The Austrian school was well within the mainstream of economic thought by the 1930s, but fell from...