Sydney Morning Herald

Sydney Morning Herald

Defining greed is an indulgence of its own

30/12/2008
Complicated times provoke simple answers. As the global financial crisis keeps unfolding, the no less global intellectual elite has readily identified the culprit. Political and religious leaders, artists and even some economists are convinced greed is to blame for our economic problems. A combined Google search for “global financial crisis” and “greed” delivers no fewer than 87,900 results. But is greed really the culprit or just a convenient scapegoat? And is greed an economic category at all?

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Sydney Morning Herald

There’s no such thing as a free bus service, Mr Premier

05/12/2008
Nathan Rees promised to make Sydneysiders’ lives easier on Wednesday as he launched the off-peak bus service between Circular Quay and Central Station. “Sometimes it can be difficult to know exactly which bus to catch if you’re only going a few blocks in the city,” he said. The buses will be free to use, courtesy of the Government. But is he making a positive contribution to public transport or is it a politician’s pre-Christmas gimmick?

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Sydney Morning Herald

Capitalism: bruised but still champion

15/11/2008
These are difficult times for liberals. The mood around the world is turning against them. Politicians find it easier to blame crazy economists and greedy managers for financial turmoil than to understand and fix their own mistakes. Free-marketers still have the evidence of economic history on their side, but they will have to make their case more forcefully from now on. They face a constant battle of ideas that can never be decisively won. But they can take consolation in the fact that today’s swing to the left will not spell the end of history, let alone of capitalism.

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