Expansion. Contraction. Repeat. For almost 200 years, we’ve recognized this boom-and-bust pattern as the business cycle, the downward and upward movement of gross domestic product (GDP) around its long-term growth trend. But while we all know what it is, we don’t always agree on what causes the business cycle. In the following series of four videos, economist Tyler Cowen briefly explains four different theories —Austrian Theory, Keynesian Theory, Monetarist Theory, and Real Business Cycle Theory —and highlights some of the...

What just happened? The Supreme Court avoided issuing a major ruling today in bined religious liberty case, Zubik v. Burwell. In a unanimous decision, the justices wrote that the Court “expresses no view on the merits of the cases” but were instead sending the case back down to the lower courts for opposing parties to work out promise. What is this case, and what’s it about? The case, Zubik v. bines seven challenges to the Health and Human Services’ (HHS)...

What is it with nuns crusading against corporate lobbying? This fad of recent years has grabbed headlines as orders such as the Sisters of Mercy and the Benedictine Sisters of Virginia gravitated toward political actions as members of shareholder activist group the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility. Seems there’s nothing alternately cuter pelling than a nun “speaking truth” to corporate power as the ICCR nuns do each year in their campaign against lobbying and donations to nonprofit organizations such as...

Divination, bearing false witness and pantheism are three no-no’s of Christianity. You could look it up. I know from personal experience that many of my fellow pewsitters in the Catholic tradition fail in their attempts to obey the strictures of the faith by seeking out tarot cards, Ouija boards, horoscopes and the like. Many of us are guilty also of spreading deceit, bald-faced lies or even plete and unsettled facts as ontological truths. This has been a problem for some...

The monwealth of Puerto Rico is struggling under a massive $72 billion debt and a decade-long economic recession. Here is what you should know about the ongoing financial crisis: How did the debt crisis happen? During the Spanish-American War in the late 1890s the U.S. military invaded the Spanish-owned island of Puerto Rico. After the war ended, the U.S. retained control, making the islands an unincorporated territory and the residents U.S. citizens. In 1917, Congress passed the Puerto Rican Federal...

Acton Institute Research Fellow and Director of Poverty, Inc. Michael Matheson Miller made an appearance on Fox Business Channel last week to discuss how his documentary addresses the issue of celebrity efforts at poverty alleviation, noting that often, such campaigns can do more harm than good. You can watch the interview below. ...

Acton Institute Director of Research Samuel Gregg joined host John Harper on Relevant Radio’sMorning Air on Friday morning to discuss his latest book,For God and Profit: How Banking and Finance Can Serve the Common Good.Banking and finance are vitally important institutions in a free and prosperous society, and ordered properly contribute a great deal to mon good. The real question of the day is whether or not our banking and finance systems are properly ordered, and if they have gotten...

I want to be very clear from the outset that moral concerns surrounding transgender identity are not unimportant. But in the likely event that we e to any national consensus on that question any time soon, it is important not to overlook other moral and social concerns that are far more pressing. In particular, there are legitimate concerns regarding safety and privacy, no matter which side one favors, but resorting to the force of law will leave some real victims...

In the Old Testament there mandments. Apparently,God deemed those to be enough to regulate almost every aspect of the lives of his people for thousands of years. You could read all of them in less than 30 minutes. The American federal government, however, is not so succinct. There are over 1 million restrictions in the federal regulations alone (i.e., not counting the statutory law). And thousands more are added every year. Each year the Competitive Enterprise Institute puts out annual...

“MartinLuther probably did more than any Protestant to establish thetheology of work many Christians embrace today,” says Dan Doriani. “Like no theologian before him, he insisted on the dignity and value of all labor.” Doriani highlights many of Luther’s positive contributions to the theology of work, but warnsthat it can lead to confusing “work” and “vocation”: There is occupation without vocation. One can earn bread as a cashier, cook, nanny, or salesperson without hearing a call to that life. A...