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Ask the Expert: Why Can Judges Compel Testimony?
The fact that judges can compel testimony and, if someone doesn't answer, send him to jail for refusing may seem to conflict with the notion of a free and just society. Cato legal associate Trevor Burrus, however, explains that certain procedures are necessary to preserve our broader system of liberties. When reading the brief legal history Burrus provides, it becomes clear that our current legal system is much better than those of the past, and it actually does a good job at maintaining peace and constitutional limits.
This was the latest addition to our Ask the Expert column. To submit a question of your own for a Cato scholar to answer, write to AskTheExpert@cato.org.
Ask the Expert: Can Businesses Transact with Gold on the Internet?
Jim Harper, Director of Information Policy Studies at the Cato Institute and government regulation guru, presents the case for transacting business on the Internet with precious metals as currency and the reasons why governments aren't likely to support it. Companies have offered platforms that facilitate alternative payment methods in the past. However, the U.S. government typically cracks down on these ventures citing that the anonymity and inherent lack of oversight that such a system offers draw attention from more criminal minds. There are additional reasons why governments may be interested in stomping out this concept of free-market business interaction, and Harper speculates on a few of them as well.
Ask the Expert: Is Cato Conservative, Liberal, or Radical?
Jason Kuznicki, a Cato Research Fellow and Managing Editor of Cato Unbound, explores the ideological underpinnings of the Cato Institute. Answering whether Cato subscribes to the label of "Liberal," "Conservative," "Radical," or something else, Kuznicki explains that it is difficult to confine Cato to any current, mainstream title, particularly when considering the historical nuances of such terms. However, he lays out the connections to and differences from each of the labels in question, and clarifies where and why the Cato Institute and its scholars take the positions they do.
Ask the Expert: Dan Griswold on the DREAM Act
Dan Griswold, Cato's Director of the Center for Trade Policy Studies, analyzes the merits of the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, which has appeared before both the House and Senate. He explains that, ideally, such legislation should be a misnomer, if there were more options for legal immigration and if government were less involved in education. However, based on the current system the DREAM Act would alleviate some systemic problems and lead to a more productive American economy.
Ask the Expert: Shirley Svorny on the Future for Healthcare Professionals
Cato scholar Shirley Svorny discusses the nuances of the new Obamacare legislation in relation to aspiring medical school students. She explains that while there will likely be a shift from general physicians to specialists working in teams and that taxes will almost surely increase, there are several glimmers of hope for those pursuing futures as healthcare professionals. Namely, Svorny notes that the market will adapt to new challenges, and remarks that government regulations aren't likely to stand too much in the way.
Ask the Expert: Dan Griswold on Work Visas
Dan Griswold, Director of the Center for Trade Policy Studies at Cato, argues that the current H1-B work visa policy hinders economic growth and scolds U.S. companies "for seeking the human capital they need abroad while at the same time denying them the ability to expand their skilled workforce at home."
Ask the Expert: Andrew Coulson
Andrew Coulson explains why France's educational model has not achieved proven superiority to the United States' model and suggests that intra-country studies of educational performance is one of the best measures of academic success.
Ask the Expert: Tad DeHaven on Digging Ditches and the Stimulus
A common justification for the stimulus package is that government spending can counteract economic shortfalls. Tad DeHaven explains why this is a common mistake and that the jobs we see created by government stimulus does not encompass the lost jobs and investment that we don't see.
Ask the Expert: Michael Tanner on the 2000 US Presidential Election
Michael Tanner, Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute, reflects on the 2000 US Presidential Election, arguing that it did not create division, but rather reflected a long-standing division in the US as a result of moral and cultural debates that had been raging in the US for decades beforehand.
Ask the Expert: Ben Friedman on Military Service
Cato Research Fellow in Defense and Homeland Security Studies, Ben Friedman, discusses why mandatory military service is a bad idea and the importance of maintaining a modern military structure.
Ask the Expert: Robert A. Levy on the Possibility of an Assault Weapons Ban
Robert A. Levy, chairman of Cato's board of directors and the man who organized the plaintiffs' case in D.C. v. Heller, discusses the political feasibility of an Assault Weapons Ban proposal in Congress and why such a ban may be considered unconstitutional today.
Ask the Expert: Dan Mitchell on Keynesian Economics
Dan Mitchell explains why the current economic crisis is the result of government policy mistakes and why more government intervention will not end the crisis any sooner than the market.
Ask the Expert: William Niskanen
William A. Niskanen, chairman emeritus of Cato, discusses the meaning of fiat currency and the relationship to the supply of money.
Ask the Expert: Malou Innocent
Malou Innocent, Foreign Policy Analyst at the Cato Institute argues that the U.S. should not assume that India will bow to U.S. power and that sanctions provide little to no benefit when imposed.
Ask the Expert: Ilya Shapiro
Ilya Shapiro, Senior Fellow of Cato's Center for Constitutional Studies and Editor-in-Chief, Cato Supreme Court Review, answers the question "To promote individual liberty, is a conservative or liberal Supreme Court advantageous?"
Ask the Expert: David Boaz
Executive Vice President of the Cato Institute, David Boaz, explains how far we have come in the advancement of liberty, the threats to liberty we face today, and what we may do to preserve liberty for tomorrow.
Ask the Expert: Dan Mitchell
Cato Senior Fellow, Dan Mitchell, answers the question, "Which one of the proposed tax schemes from Senators McCain and Obama is better from a free market perspective and why?"
Ask the Expert: Timothy B. Lee
In this week's Ask the Expert series, Cato adjunct scholar, Timothy B. Lee, tackles the issue of intellectual property rights from the libertarian perspective.
Ask the Expert: Tom Palmer
Cato VP for International Programs Tom G. Palmer answers the first question in Cato on Campus's new Ask the Expert series, where you get to email in questions for Cato's scholars to answer. This edition's question takes on the issue of the relationship between government and economic development in impoverished nations.