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Articles by Ian Vasquez
Oil, Venezuela, US-Venezuela oil deal
THE AMERICASEverything About the US-Venezuela Oil Deal Is Troubling Published 5 September 2026 The US-Venezuela oil deal is a gift to socialists all over the world who can now point to it with some credibility as an example of an imperial resource grab. But the deal flies in the face of economic freedom and the principle of voluntary exchange that made the United States prosperous, and it makes little strategic or economic sense.
Deregulation in Argentina: Javier Milei Takes “Deep Chainsaw” to Bureaucracy and Red Tape
By Ian Vásquez At the heart of Argentina’s chronically crisis-prone economy is a political system that encourages unconstrained public spending and overregulation in the extreme. It is the system set up by Juan Domingo Perón in the 1940s that strengthened in subsequent decades, and that President Javier Milei promised to cut down with a chainsaw and replace with classical-liberal policies of the kind that made his country one of the most prosperous in the world a century ago.
Hong Kong Convicts Jimmy Lai
Lai’s bravery against tyranny should inspire us all. This article originally appeared on the Cato Institute’s Cato at Liberty blog. A Hong Kong court this week convicted Jimmy Lai, the territory’s most prominent champion of democracy and basic human rights, of breaching national security. The sham trial and conviction confirm Hong Kong’s tragic descent into tyranny.
“Every act of major technological innovation … is an act of rebellion not just against conventional wisdom but against existing practices and vested interests,” says economic historian Joel Mokyr. He could have said the same about artistic, business, scientific, intellectual, and other forms of innovation.
The Real Threats to Golden Ages Come From Within
We mistakenly published an earlier, incomplete draft of this book review on 5/12/25. Below is the finished and final version. by Ian Vasquez “Every act of major technological innovation … is an act of rebellion not just against conventional wisdom but against existing practices and vested interests,” says economic historian Joel Mokyr. He could have said the same about artistic, business, scientific, intellectual, and other forms of innovation.
Measuring Freedom Around the World
The following is an interview conducted by Archbridge chief economist and Profectus co-editor Justin Callais with the lead authors of the Human Freedom Index, co-published by the Cato Institute and the Fraser Institute. The Human Freedom Index is the most comprehensive measure of global freedom, covering 165 jurisdictions and representing 98% of the world’s population. The 10th annual edition (released in 2024) uses 86 distinct indicators encompassing personal, civil, and economic freedom.
Judge Calls USAID Shutdown Unconstitutional. As an Aid Recipient, That Ruling Is Welcome.
I was just 10 years old, living among the devastation of post-World War II Yugoslavia, when my family received a parcel from America. It arrived through the United Nations and contained everything a struggling family might need: flour, powdered milk, soap and even a bit of chocolate. That package was more than sustenance. It was a message, an outstretched hand from across the ocean, saying, “You are not forgotten. We see you.
USAID Failed. We Need Something That Actually Improves Countries.
Elon Musk, head of the new “Department of Government Efficiency,” didn’t mince words when he announced last week that the Trump administration was closing the U.S. Agency for International Development. He said his team was “feeding USAID into the wood chipper” and that it was “time for it to die.” The crudeness might not have been necessary, but the proposal itself was warranted. Foreign aid has too many (often conflicting) goals, including promoting democracy, stability and geopolitical ties.
Guest Column: Freedom is at the center of a flourishing country. How is the U.S. doing? Original
How free are you and how free is your country? The question matters because the degree of freedom you enjoy greatly impacts human well-being. Perceptions matter, too. If we think the world has gotten worse as economies and societies have become more open, we are liable to turn our back to that openness in favor of more government control over some aspects of our lives. Non-democratic regimes also rely on such narratives to justify their power grabs.
U.S. Receives Low Ranking in Freedom Index
Global freedom hit a high point in 2007, followed by a slow decline until 2019. That period coincided with the aftermath of the global financial crisis and the rise of authoritarian populism and other forms of illiberalism around the world. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, freedom fell significantly and dropped to a slightly lower point in 2021. The decline affected 90 percent of the world’s population and set global freedom back more than two decades.
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