The English lion dismember'd or the voice of the public for an enquiry into the public expenditure.

Paper Money Rebellion

The Currency Act of 1764 returned the restrictions of 1751: banning colonists from printing their own legal tender bills.
Benjamin Franklin at work on a printing press.

Public Banks: An American Tradition

When it comes to finance and banking, early Americans like Benjamin Franklin make Bernie Sanders look conservative.
Gold Coins

The Gold Standard is Bad Economics

Why, in the face of international economic ruin, did so many countries persist in maintaining the gold standard leading up to the Great Depression?
Smiling waitress making minimum wage.

How Easy is it for Minimum-Wage Workers to Get a Raise?

The minimum-wage debate has been a long point of interest for business owners and labor economists.
The White House

The Perils of Protectionism

Why does the U.S. continue to pursue policy that doesn't work?
Indenture certificate for James Rymer Junior, binding him as an apprentice to the surgeon-apothecaries Caleb Woodyer and William Newland of Guildford, signed by all parties.

Indentured Servants and The Domestic Economy

Many 18th-century households included not only relatives and slaves, but also indentured servants, people sold into bondage for a specified length of time.
A girl studying.

The Real Driver Behind Curbing Population Growth

The solution isn't minimizing poverty or supplying more contraceptives.
Benjamin Franklin

A Nation Built on Debt

What is debt and where did it come from?
Bodcaw Bank

Are Regulations Killing the Small Community Bank in America?

Will regulations aimed at large, investment-oriented banks kill the "It’s a Wonderful Life" promise of the American community bank?
Birth of Venus - Sandro Botticelli [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

What Early Economists Thought About Sex

We take a look at how sex was viewed by early economists, from Sir William Petty to Adam Smith to Jeremy Bentham.