The $1.5 Trillion That Could Have Been Ours
From being an economic powerhouse of the Middle Ages to a third world country in the 21st century, India has surely come a long way… BACK, that is. And it is not without reason that corruption is regarded as the harbinger of poverty in the country. Sample this: In 2006, a Swiss Banking Association Report said that “India has more black money than the rest of the world combined.” Unofficial reports estimate the total sum to be more that a whopping $1,456 billion in black money in Swiss banks. The question to ask is why Indian money goes to the Swiss and not the other way round.
Can India Ever Progress?
“Dinesh Trivedi’s budget has caused a political storm, after…Trinamool Congress asked him to withdraw the hike or quit…The Trinamool Congress, termed across-the-board passenger fare hikes as a ‘hostile act’.”– Economic Times, March 15, 2012
Democracy after Capitalism or Capitalism after Democracy?
Democracy after Capitalism or Capitalism after Democracy? Does the order really matter? This is a question I have always wondered about. Democracy and capitalism have always been thought in the same light. Irrespective of the order, the very coexistence
Can India Become the Gambling Bowl of the World?
To be able to answer this question, let’s conduct a small tour across the only two states in India which boasts of casinos.
An Unusual Timeline of Gambling History (3000 BC –1900 AD)
Are you surprised to know that gambling existed even in 3000 BC Mesopotamia? In fact, the oldest six-sided dice was invented in Northern Iraq (erstwhile Mesopotamia).
What Happens Today Under the Pretext of Free Market
Free markets caused the 2008-2009 global meltdown. I hear people say this a lot. How can “freedom” make people work against themselves? President Obama said in a speech that the recession resulted from the fact that “everybody was left to fend for themselves
US Casino Industry Generates $125 Bn in 2010
The Unites States is still reeling under the pressure of a slowdown, they say. The casino industry seems to be telling us a different story altogether. Last year, the US casino industry and industries that depend on them generated $125 billion, according
Will a Laissez-Faire System Boost Economic Growth?
Which kind of economy would you vote for – a laissez-faire market or a planned economy? My vote is for free markets.
Was Laissez Faire Responsible for the Economic Crisis?
It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer or the baker, that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own self interest. We address ourselves, not to their humanity but to their self-love, and never talk to them of our
3 Most Common Myths About Capitalism
If we take a look at the economic history worldwide, private businesses have been instrumental in improving the standard of living. Business houses have created job opportunities, invented products, made profits, helped impoverished people and
Rakesh Wadhwa. Ever since, I was a school boy, I knew India was on the wrong path. Socialism was just not what we needed to get ahead. Government controlled our travel; government controlled our ability to buy and sell; and government controlled our freedom to move our money. My life has focused on the inherent rights people have. When I was in college, I never understood, what the governments meant by their "socialistic attitude". If people are free to buy, sell and move their capital themselves without any restrictions by state, then the welfare of people is inevitable & hence the countries they live in will become wealthy. The government has no right whatsoever, to point a finger at me or my business. I am not a revolutionary. I just want to light up my cigarette and not get nagged about it. I believe in non-interfering attitude to attain more. 
The Bastiat Award is a journalism award, given annually by the International Policy Network, London. Bastiat Prize entries are judged on intellectual content, the persuasiveness of the language used and the type of publication in which they appear. Rakesh Wadhwa won the 3rd prize (a cash award of $1,000 and a candlestick), in 2006.
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