The death of former mainland Chinese premier Zhu Rongji on August 12 has renewed discussion of his economic legacy. Zhu, who served as premier from 1998 to 2003 after previously overseeing much of mainland China’s economic policy as vice premier, was one of the principal architects of the market-oriented reforms of the 1990s. He restructured state-owned enterprises, strengthened the central government’s fiscal capacity, promoted housing reform, and used mainland China’s accession to the World Trade Organization as a means of exposing domestic firms to greater competition.
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Extremism, Interventionism, and Political Polarization
One of the least productive habits in contemporary politics is the assumption that criticizing one political party automatically means supporting its principal opponent. In Spain, criticism of the PSOE is frequently interpreted as evidence that one must therefore support the Partido Popular or Vox. The same binary reasoning increasingly appears elsewhere: if one criticizes the progressive left, one must be “far right”; if one criticizes Donald Trump, one must belong to the left.
Continue readingPolitical Correctness: Voluntary Respect or Politically Enforced Conformity?
Political correctness has become one of the most controversial concepts in contemporary Western societies. Ironically, much of the debate begins before any substantive discussion even starts, because people rarely agree on what the term actually means.
Continue readingPolicy Should Come Before Party
Recently, someone asked me why I’m willing to discuss politicians, public policy, and even my informal opinions about political figures in the classroom, yet I rarely post those views on Facebook or X.
Continue readingAn Economist’s Reflections on the Recent Eviction Case Involving an 82-Year-Old Woman in Madrid
In recent days, the temporary suspension of the eviction of an 82-year-old woman in Madrid has attracted considerable media attention. As an economist, I believe cases like this deserve careful analysis based on the facts, rather than solely on the emotions they inevitably provoke.
Continue readingEconomic Freedom, LGBTI Rights, and the Price of Pride
One week from today, I will be in Amsterdam to take part in The Price of Pride: Economic Freedom & Digital Rights, an event organized by the European Liberal Forum in cooperation with the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom Europe and Rainbow Platform, on the fringes of EuroPride and WorldPride Amsterdam. The event will bring together researchers, activists, policymakers, and content creators to discuss a question that is often fragmented across different academic and political debates: how do economic freedom, digital rights, personal liberty, and human dignity interact in the lives of LGBTI people?
Continue readingReflections from the 10th Austrian Economics Meeting Europe in Angers
From May 28 to May 30, I had the privilege of participating in the 10th Austrian Economics Meeting Europe, held in the historic city of Angers, France. Events like this remind me why academic exchange remains one of the most important elements of intellectual development.
Continue readingHow Long Should It Take to Start a Business? Economic Freedom, Bureaucracy, and the Jobs Spain Never Sees
How long should a citizen have to wait before being allowed to create a firm? The question sounds administrative, but it is fundamentally economic and political. A new firm is not merely a registration in a government database. It can become a workplace, a source of income for a family, a competitor that forces established firms to improve, or the first opportunity for someone who has been unemployed to enter the labor market. When the state makes entry unnecessarily slow, expensive, or uncertain, the cost is therefore borne not only by the entrepreneur standing at the administrative counter. It is also borne by people whose jobs, wages, products, and opportunities may never come into existence.
Continue readingWhen Cinema Meets Historical Literacy: A Reflection on The King’s Man
It is not uncommon to see sharply divided reactions to films like The King’s Man. Some viewers dismiss it as chaotic or historically confusing, while others appreciate its deeper narrative structure and references. The difference, more often than not, lies not in the film itself, but in the viewer’s familiarity with history—particularly the complex web of European political relations before and during the First World War.
Continue readingEducation as Commitment: Methodology, Professional Ethics, and the Responsibility to Guide
In my approach to education, I have long held myself to a simple rule: respond to every student within forty-eight hours if I am not overloaded. No matter how demanding a week becomes, I refuse to allow a student’s question to disappear into silence. Education is not merely the act of lecturing or delivering content; it is the practice of showing presence, of demonstrating through action that every concern, every confusion, and every step forward truly matters.
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