Last year, the federal government took in more money than any year in history - $2.7 trillion. The federal government also spent more money than any year in history - $3.7 trillion. We spent a trillion dollars more last year than we spent in 2006, just seven years earlier!

This shows that no matter how much we increase government spending, the problems that money is supposed to alleviate still exist, now accompanied by the additional burden of astronomical debt. (more…)

Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman coined the adage, "There's no such thing as a free lunch." What he meant, of course, is that nothing in life is free. When we get a product or service we call "free," it simply means that someone else paid for it. (more…)

Yesterday's rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court did NOT create a fundamental right for same-sex couples to marry. Mississippi's laws regarding the definition of marriage are not affected by these rulings. In fact, the Court seemed to reinforce the right of states to define marriage for the purpose of their own laws. (more…)

Government poverty programs usually start with a small nucleus of people who, most everyone agrees, really need help. Then just beyond that nucleus, there is a group of people who almost qualify but make just a little too much money. So wouldn’t compassion demand that you expand the program just a little to include them? When you do that, you’ve now created a bigger circle, meaning even more people just beyond the line, and the pressure builds to include those people. And so it goes, eventually encompassing vast groups of people who would never have been defined as being “needy” when the program first began. (more…)

Most rational people are concerned about the unconscionable burden of debt being placed on our children and grandchildren by the federal government. The explosion in federal spending is largely due to the rapid and unsustainable growth in entitlement programs. (more…)

When legislators or the public consider a newly-proposed government program, or an existing one for that matter, the first thought is usually, "How can we make this work best?" Instead, the first question should be, "Is this something government should be doing at all?" (more…)

Vital Signs Radio Commentary

Vital Signs Radio Commentary is a 60-second commentary by MCPP President Forest Thigpen. It is aired on the stations and networks listed below.

You can listen anytime, by clicking here to go to the MCPP Commentary page on this website. Just click the title you would like to hear, and you'll see the text of the commentary and "click here to listen to this commentary." (more…)

In the first episode of The Beverly Hillbillies, Jed Clampett’s sister asks how much the oil company is going to pay him for the oil on his property. Jed said, “Twelve dollars.” His sister was shocked: “Only twelve dollars?!” Jed replied, “Yeah, but it’s some new kind of dollar. I’ve heard of paper dollars, and I’ve heard of silver dollars, but these are called mill-ee-yun’ dollars.” (more…)

The new school ratings are out, and some education leaders are saying the new A-F rating system is tougher than the old model. The fact is that the new system changed nothing except the labels. It did nothing to toughen the formula that is used to derive those labels, and in fact it was actually easier to achieve an A or B this year because the State Board of Education voted to exclude graduation rates from their grading formula this year. (more…)