Minor Issues

Fresh from the Tenth Madrid Conference on Austrian Economics, Mark Thornton reflects on the enthusiasm for free-market ideas. He then examines mounting government debt, European energy shortages, political unrest, and the threat of renewed war with Iran. Mark argues that these overlapping crises expose the failures of Western statism and warns that the coming months could be especially unpredictable.For more information about the 2026 Madrid Conference, visit https://masterescuelaaustriaca.es/en/madrid-annual-conference-on-austrian-economics-2. For more information on the master’s degree program in Austrian economics at Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, visit https://masterescuelaaustriaca.es/en.2026 is the Year of Rothbard—Murray's 100th birthday—and we're celebrating by giving away free copies of War Collectivism: Power, Business, and the Intellectual Class in World War I through November 30. Grab yours today at https://mises.org/issuesfree20% off listener offer on the insulated Minor Issues tumbler and three of Mark's books: https://mises.org/MinorIssuesTumbler. Use coupon code Thornton.Be sure to follow Minor Issues at https://Mises.org/MinorIssues

On this episode of Minor Issues, Mark Thornton makes the counterintuitive case that higher oil prices early in the Persian Gulf conflict might have reduced the economic damage. He explains how government intervention and the release of strategic oil reserves distort market signals, discourage production and conservation, and leave the global energy market increasingly vulnerable to future disruptions.See also the "Crude Oil Prices: West Texas Intermediate (WTI)" chart at https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/DCOILWTICO2026 is the Year of Rothbard—Murray's 100th birthday—and we're celebrating by giving away free copies of Wall Street, Banks, and American Foreign Policy through October 31. Grab yours today at https://mises.org/issuesfree20% off listener offer on the insulated Minor Issues tumbler and three of Mark's books: https://mises.org/MinorIssuesTumbler. Use coupon code Thornton.Be sure to follow Minor Issues at https://Mises.org/MinorIssues

Mark Thornton examines the collapse of trust in Washington as government debt, monetary inflation, and foreign wars undermine America's standing at home and abroad. Drawing on lessons from history, he argues that lasting reform won't come from political personalities, but from a bottom-up commitment to sound money, individual liberty, and limited government.2026 is the Year of Rothbard—Murray's 100th birthday—and we're celebrating by giving away free copies of Wall Street, Banks, and American Foreign Policy through October 31. Grab yours today at https://mises.org/issuesfree20% off listener offer on the insulated Minor Issues tumbler and three of Mark's books: https://mises.org/MinorIssuesTumbler. Use coupon code Thornton.Be sure to follow Minor Issues at https://Mises.org/MinorIssues

Mark Thornton examines the rise of political violence in America, drawing on Robert Pape’s Our Own Worst Enemies and its warning that political violence has become increasingly normalized on both the left and right. Mark argues that the deeper cause is not simply “fractured legitimacy,” but the long breakdown of America’s original limited-government consensus, accelerated by Progressive Era ideology, war, federal expansion, and monetary intervention.He then points to the Federal Reserve as the proximate cause of today’s social and economic strain, arguing that monetary inflation drives higher prices, suppresses real wages, benefits asset holders, and fuels political resentment. The remedy, Mark says, begins with a return toward sound money and the older American consensus of limited government.On Side B, the episode features recent interviews with Darrell Thomas of VRIC Media and Elijah Johnson of Liberty and Finance, covering distrust in government, gold and silver, the bond bear market, inflation, government market manipulation, AI malinvestment, the wealth gap, dollar hegemony, and the road toward hyperinflation.Additional ResourcesOur Own Worst Enemies: America and the Age of Violent Populism by Robert A. Pape: https://www.amazon.com/Our-Own-Worst-Enemies-Populism/dp/1620979586"Right-Wing Populism: A Strategy for the Paleo Movement" by Murray N. Rothbard (Rothbard Rockwell Report, January 1992): https://rothbard.it/articles/right-wing-populism.pdf"Why Our Populist Moment Keeps Failing" by Connor O'Keeffe: https://mises.org/mises-wire/why-our-populist-moment-keeps-failing"Populism Is Not an Ideology" by Joseph T. Salerno: https://mises.org/mises-wire/populism-not-ideology"When Political Violence Becomes a Signal" by Jimmy Alfonso Licon: https://mises.org/mises-wire/when-political-violence-becomes-signal"The Populist Case for the Gold Standard" by Kristoffer Hansen (The Journal of Libertarian Studies, May 2021): https://mises.org/journal-libertarian-studies/populist-case-gold-standard2026 is the Year of Rothbard—Murray's 100th birthday—and we're celebrating by giving away free copies of Wall Street, Banks, and American Foreign Policy through October 31. Grab yours today at https://mises.org/issuesfree20% off listener offer on the insulated Minor Issues tumbler and three of Mark's books: https://mises.org/MinorIssuesTumbler. Use coupon code Thornton.Be sure to follow Minor Issues at https://Mises.org/MinorIssues

Mark Thornton examines whether the precious metals market is coiling after last year’s push, this year’s correction, and months of volatility driven by war news, Fed policy, the dollar, and CPI concerns. He lays out six factors shaping the market: refining bottlenecks, metals flowing east, stacker psychology, sluggish mining stocks, the limited effect of rate hikes, and the Fed’s continued accommodative posture despite its inflation-fighting rhetoric.He then connects those market signals to a broader problem: government intervention and manipulation across interest rates, currencies, bonds, favored companies, AI, and financial markets. On Side B, the episode features recent interviews with Paul Buitink and Julia La Roche on AI, gold, the Persian Gulf war, and the macro forces affecting individuals.2026 is the Year of Rothbard—Murray's 100th birthday—and we're celebrating by giving away free copies of Wall Street, Banks, and American Foreign Policy through October 31. Grab yours today at https://mises.org/issuesfree20% off listener offer on the insulated Minor Issues tumbler and three of Mark's books: https://mises.org/MinorIssuesTumbler. Use coupon code Thornton.Be sure to follow Minor Issues at https://Mises.org/MinorIssues