Articles | www.asinstitute.org

Forsaking Institutional Sovereignty

By Dr. Khalil Ahmad

April 29, 2011

Had he not bowed down to the outside pressure on his sovereign office to reinstate the deposed Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and other judges, and his party’s Prime Minister not withdrawn his orders of putting ISI under the control of the Interior Ministry, I would have been madly in love with President Asif Ali Zardari and his government! Alas, in Pakistan wishes and interests of a select few reign supreme, not the constitution of the country!

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Reliving Pak Tea House

By Dr. Khalil Ahmad

April 24, 2011

The demise of the Pak Tea House is symptomatic of the crisis of intellectual independence and private initiative in Pakistan. The premises is still there, existing with its symbolic glory, waiting for someone with entrepreneurial spirit to make use of its huge potential, who would turn it once again into Pak Tea House? Let’s see who reinvents and relives the Pak Tea House!

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A World Without Rules

By Dr. Khalil Ahmad

March 11, 2011

There are only two things we should fight for. One is the defense of our homes and the other is the Bill of Rights. War for any other reason is simply a racket.
[Major General Smedley Butler, War Is a Racket (1935)]

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Legislating Middleman’s Ouster

By Dr. Khalil Ahmad

March 2, 2011

The middleman tends to be eliminated . . . He can only be safely eliminated by natural processes. Sometimes he is of real use and helps production; sometimes he is not; but this cannot be decided by a blind strike, but only by allowing the forces of competition to act upon him.
[Hon. Auberon Herbert]

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Economic Backbone: It’s None Of Your Business

By Nyda Mukhtar

February 21, 2011

They are capable of resuscitating a dying economy and of making third world countries first world powers. They can develop cities and rural areas, put an end to wars, and make societies and communities stronger.

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Next Elections Next Month

By Dr. Khalil Ahmad

February 13, 2011

Then there was the Raymond Davis episode that proved to be a blessing in disguise to each and everyone fond of trying his / their hands at politicking. Both provincial and federal governments are making political hay while the Raymond Davis’ sun shines. This long queue also includes so many of those who are determined to fight and defeat US the Super Power in Lahore. What a great opportunity they have got to wage the 3rd World War against the last Super Power! (These politicos plan to be the next themselves!)

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The Cruelest Tax Of All

By Sarel Oberholster

January 31, 2011

The zero-interest-rate policy deserves closer scrutiny. Would a saver willingly agree to an economic environment of zero interest rates? Certainly not. Would a debtor prefer a zero interest rate? Absolutely. The saver and the debtor would, under normal, willing-economic-participant conditions, negotiate a "price" for the use of money saved. That price for the use of funds is interest.

The central bank enters the negotiation between saver and borrower, and by counterfeiting money it destroys the negotiating base of the saver. Counterfeiting money through policies of unlimited liquidity provision is a "price control" over interest rates, instituted to force interest rates down and eventually spiral them downwards out of control to zero. The interest income of the saver is eventually taxed to extinction at zero interest rates.

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Natural Gas: Need For Price Rationalization

January 26, 2011

By Ali Salman

The multi-pronged strategy of the government to make up for the gas deficit does not consider price rationalization in its policy mix. In presence of wrong price structure, supply side measures like exploration and conservation are likely to meet with failure.

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Monetary Policy: The Right Increase

By Ali Salman

January 22, 2011

The State Bank’s decision to increase the discount rate seems justified to counter the rising inflation, a negative real interest rate and increased government borrowing.

When real interest rates are negative, there is no incentive for lending and saving. In such an inflationary environment, every individual would rationally spend her money today rather than save for tomorrow. This would further deepen the inflationary spiral.

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The Fatal Folly Of Protectionism

By Farooq Tirmizi

January 18, 2011

In a nutshell, protectionism is when a government restricts the flow of goods in or out of the country – either through tariffs, quotas or outright bans – in order to protect either local producers or consumers of the good in question.

Yet, since 1929, the world’s economists have, by and large, agreed that protectionism is damaging to both the country that engages in it as well as the rest of the world. This is because protectionism was the leading cause of the Great Depression.

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