Chris Freiman
@chrisfreiman.bsky.social
Professor, John Chambers College of Business and Economics, West Virginia University | Author of *Why It’s OK to Ignore Politics* | Libertarianism, neoliberalism, effective altruism
If you dismiss the economic consensus on the harms of rent control, price gouging restrictions, etc. but embrace it on the harms of tariffs, you’re likely in the grip of politically motivated reasoning
March 30, 2025 at 6:47 PM
If you dismiss the economic consensus on the harms of rent control, price gouging restrictions, etc. but embrace it on the harms of tariffs, you’re likely in the grip of politically motivated reasoning
The key to understanding politics is recognizing that most partisans are more committed to opposing outparty members than adhering to their own policies and principles
March 11, 2025 at 1:24 PM
The key to understanding politics is recognizing that most partisans are more committed to opposing outparty members than adhering to their own policies and principles
It’s easy to dismiss the significance of material abundance when we have it—it’s hard to dismiss its significance when we lose it
March 11, 2025 at 11:42 AM
It’s easy to dismiss the significance of material abundance when we have it—it’s hard to dismiss its significance when we lose it
A reminder on the anniversary of Stalin’s death
March 5, 2025 at 11:58 AM
A reminder on the anniversary of Stalin’s death
This strikes me as an obvious point, but maybe it isn’t: an unconditional anti-war stance can in fact incentivize war by disregarding deterrence effects
February 26, 2025 at 2:11 PM
This strikes me as an obvious point, but maybe it isn’t: an unconditional anti-war stance can in fact incentivize war by disregarding deterrence effects
Mail delivery isn’t a public good and there’s no compelling reason not to privatize it
February 24, 2025 at 12:26 PM
Mail delivery isn’t a public good and there’s no compelling reason not to privatize it
There’s a tension between the progressive view on school choice (if you want the school of your choice, pay for it yourself) and the progressive view on SNAP benefits (recipients should be able to use them to get whatever they want)
February 20, 2025 at 2:10 PM
There’s a tension between the progressive view on school choice (if you want the school of your choice, pay for it yourself) and the progressive view on SNAP benefits (recipients should be able to use them to get whatever they want)
A lot of moral confusion arises from thinking of employers as something other than buyers of labor. Just as it’s morally permissible for you to seek out the best deal when shopping for a TV, it’s morally permissible for an employer to seek out the best deal when hiring workers
February 19, 2025 at 4:31 PM
A lot of moral confusion arises from thinking of employers as something other than buyers of labor. Just as it’s morally permissible for you to seek out the best deal when shopping for a TV, it’s morally permissible for an employer to seek out the best deal when hiring workers
People who claim that free speech primarily benefits the powerful have an exceedingly impoverished understanding of the history of free speech
February 17, 2025 at 10:42 PM
People who claim that free speech primarily benefits the powerful have an exceedingly impoverished understanding of the history of free speech
I’m seeing tax cuts characterized as “giving money” to those people whose taxes are cut but this wrongly assumes that the state has a stronger claim to that money than those people themselves
February 17, 2025 at 10:42 PM
I’m seeing tax cuts characterized as “giving money” to those people whose taxes are cut but this wrongly assumes that the state has a stronger claim to that money than those people themselves
When Republicans want to dramatically cut government spending without addressing entitlement programs
February 11, 2025 at 3:10 PM
When Republicans want to dramatically cut government spending without addressing entitlement programs
The claim that no entrepreneur should earn one billion dollars is just as unpersuasive and arbitrary as claiming that no politician should earn ten million votes
February 4, 2025 at 2:17 PM
The claim that no entrepreneur should earn one billion dollars is just as unpersuasive and arbitrary as claiming that no politician should earn ten million votes
People typically don’t support tariffs because they’re efficient—they support tariffs because (1) doing so expresses and affirms their social identity (“put America first”) or (2) they receive the concentrated benefits while others pay the dispersed costs
February 3, 2025 at 2:50 PM
People typically don’t support tariffs because they’re efficient—they support tariffs because (1) doing so expresses and affirms their social identity (“put America first”) or (2) they receive the concentrated benefits while others pay the dispersed costs
Reposted by Chris Freiman
In case you missed it - the latest PolPhilPod
Is it ethical to not vote? Is it rational to? & does an existential threat change things? I debate with @chrisfreiman.bsky.social
www.politicalphilosophypodcast.com/ip
Is it ethical to not vote? Is it rational to? & does an existential threat change things? I debate with @chrisfreiman.bsky.social
www.politicalphilosophypodcast.com/ip
IGNORING POLITICS with Chris Freiman
Do we have an ethical obligation to vote? Chris Freiman joins the podcast to argue no, our time and energy is better spent elsewhere. I disagree, and through the conversation we pressure test many of ...
www.politicalphilosophypodcast.com
February 1, 2025 at 11:30 PM
In case you missed it - the latest PolPhilPod
Is it ethical to not vote? Is it rational to? & does an existential threat change things? I debate with @chrisfreiman.bsky.social
www.politicalphilosophypodcast.com/ip
Is it ethical to not vote? Is it rational to? & does an existential threat change things? I debate with @chrisfreiman.bsky.social
www.politicalphilosophypodcast.com/ip
From *Why It’s OK to Ignore Politics*
February 1, 2025 at 1:42 PM
From *Why It’s OK to Ignore Politics*
Reposted by Chris Freiman
New Political Philosophy Podcast Episode!!
@chrisfreiman.bsky.social argues we need less voters, I argue we need more
www.politicalphilosophypodcast.com/ip
@chrisfreiman.bsky.social argues we need less voters, I argue we need more
www.politicalphilosophypodcast.com/ip
IGNORING POLITICS with Chris Freiman
Do we have an ethical obligation to vote? Chris Freiman joins the podcast to argue no, our time and energy is better spent elsewhere. I disagree, and through the conversation we pressure test many of ...
www.politicalphilosophypodcast.com
January 31, 2025 at 8:50 PM
New Political Philosophy Podcast Episode!!
@chrisfreiman.bsky.social argues we need less voters, I argue we need more
www.politicalphilosophypodcast.com/ip
@chrisfreiman.bsky.social argues we need less voters, I argue we need more
www.politicalphilosophypodcast.com/ip
Reposted by Chris Freiman
Just recorded a super interesting convo on if you should vote with @chrisfreiman.bsky.social
January 30, 2025 at 9:34 PM
Just recorded a super interesting convo on if you should vote with @chrisfreiman.bsky.social
If we accept Sowell’s view that conservatives endorse a “constrained vision” that should motivate a cautious approach to social and political change, it’s pretty clear that MAGA is not conservative
January 28, 2025 at 5:06 PM
If we accept Sowell’s view that conservatives endorse a “constrained vision” that should motivate a cautious approach to social and political change, it’s pretty clear that MAGA is not conservative
If you think you’ll enrich Americans by imposing a tax on goods entering the country, you should try enriching your family by imposing a tax on goods entering your household
January 28, 2025 at 4:49 PM
If you think you’ll enrich Americans by imposing a tax on goods entering the country, you should try enriching your family by imposing a tax on goods entering your household
This is a lukewarm—if not downright cold—take, but the basic mistake made by many socialists is regarding employment decisions as different, in some deep sense, than any other economic transaction that’s entered into voluntarily with the expectation of (mutual) benefit
January 25, 2025 at 4:15 PM
This is a lukewarm—if not downright cold—take, but the basic mistake made by many socialists is regarding employment decisions as different, in some deep sense, than any other economic transaction that’s entered into voluntarily with the expectation of (mutual) benefit
