Weekend round up: Benko on the current order's bankruptcy; Ferrara contrasts the candidates; Brennan on inequality.

From TGSN, Ralph Benko highlights a WSJ article that positively notes the stability provided by gold-linked currency.

On Forbes, Peter Ferrara contrasts the economic policies of President Obama and Mitt Romney.

At NRO, Patrick Brennan rebuts claims that income inequality is responsible for the economic crisis.

On CNBC, Don Luskin downplays global recession fears:

At Advisor Perspectives, Mish Shedlock suggests the US is already in a recession.

In The WSJ, Stephen Moore highlights Sen. Kirsten Gilibrand’s (NY) efforts to shield the food stamps program from cuts.

At TGSN, Jon Decker reviews Treasure Hunt in the Enchanted Forest, a children’s book that explains sound money, basic economics and savings.

In The WSJ, my old boss C. Boyden Gray announces a federal lawsuit to challenge Dodd-Frank’s constitutionality.

On International Liberty, Dan Mitchell critiques the Eurozone’s economic illiteracy.

In The WSJ, Jason Riley notes Mitt Romney’s new immigration reform proposals.

The WSJ remembers Milton Friedman collaborator Anna Schwartz.

From Fiscal Times, Bruce Bartlett sees the coming fiscal cliff as a chance for real tax and budget reform.

Monday round up: Ryan underscores growth; Forbes on the weak dollar; Ranson on zero interest rates.

From Forbes, Charles Kadlec applauds Mitt Romney’s focus on economic freedom.

In The WSJ, Jason Riley reports conservative Sen. Jim DeMint’s (SC) support for Romney.

At his website, US Rep. Paul Ryan (WI) returns to his supply-side roots with a study, "The Fiscal Effects of FasterGrowth."

On CNBC, Steve Forbes discusses the slow growth economy, the dollar, trade and taxes:



At Forbes, David Ranson explains the negative impact of the zero interest rate policy.

From The American, Bret Swanson highlights technology's impact on economic growth.

At Forbes, John Tamny derides the US attack on China’s rare earths export policy.

On The Kudlow Report, a panel discusses the Fed, the market, and the falling dollar:



The WSJ reports the dollarization of Zimbabwe’s inflation-ravaged economy.

The WSJ notes former flat taxer Gov. Jerry Brown’s (CA) proposal to raise his state’s top tax rate to 13%.

Tuesday summary: Reynolds on unemployement benefits; Benko reports conservative support for monetary reform; Rutledge on North Korea.

From Forbes, Alan Reynolds argues shortening unemployment benefits' duration would lower unemployment and help the President’s re-election prospects.

On TGSN, Ralph Benko highlights conservative leaders’ support for sound money.

At Forbes, Charles Kadlec applauds and critiques the recent Bank of England report on Bretton Woods.

On The Kudlow Report, John Rutledge suggests North Korea may liberalize under its new leadership:



From The Washington Times, Richard Rahn rebuts Keynesian claims on government spending.

In USA Today, Mitt Romney opposes the European-style nanny state.

At The WSJ, Jason Riley notes that Romney’s 25% support is healthy for this stage of a primary contest.

In The NYT, Joe Nocera suggests GSEs were not responsible for the real estate bubble.

From Alhambra Partners, Joseph Calhoun analyzes the economies of Europe, Asia and the US.

On Fox, Steve Forbes debates EPA regulations:



In The Washington Post, Charles Lane challenges the President’s income inequality claims.

From The NYT, Bruce Bartlett argues cutting the corporate tax rate won’t improve the economy. 

At COAL, Paul Krugman wonders if China’s real estate bubble is bursting.

Thursday items: Woodhill proposes Greek reforms; Domitrovic on 19th century panics; Laffer on Italy.

From Forbes, Louis Woodhill offers Greece a compelling alternative to austerity.

At Forbes, Brian Domitrovic analyzes the economic panics during the classical gold standard.

On The Kudlow Report, Art Laffer sounds optimistic about Italy’s new leader:

 
From Alhambra Investments, John Chapman explains the US is far more guilty of currency manipulation than China.

In Canada's Financial Post, Peter Foster reports from a Keynesian debate on the parallels between Japan’s deflationary recession and the current US situation. Unmentioned is the yen’s sharp appreciation versus gold and the dollar since the mid-1980s, and the dollar’s sharp appreciation versus the euro and gold in summer 2008.

At NRO, Larry Kudlow highlights positive economic news.

Caffeinated Thoughts notes the gold standard’s popularity with Iowa Republicans.

In The WSJ, Walter Russell Mead sees France and Germany in a struggle over the eurozone’s economic culture:

France is basically a Club Med country with some northern features (historically often found among the Huguenots and Jews, out of which communities many of its most successful business leaders have come). It wants a "political" economic system for Europe, one in which political pressures can ensure the kind of steady devaluation of the euro that Italy, Spain, France, Greece and Portugal used to enjoy with their national currencies in the good old pre-euro days. The only problem with this old system was that it gave too many advantages to the Germans, Dutch and others (in the form of lower interest rates). France wants to stick the Germans with a Latin currency and Latin rules for running it.

Germany, on the other hand, wants the Latin countries to live by northern rules: Keep the currency sound, the budgets balanced and let the chips fall where they may. There is zero, repeat, zero consensus in Germany to go Latin and give the euro into the hands of slick French and Italian politicians. Technocrats bound by rules, the Germans can accept: That is why an Italian technocrat is following a Frenchman at the head of the ECB. But that is also why the Germans are being such sticklers about ECB rules against bailouts and unlimited ECB purchases of sovereign bonds.

At RCM, Alan Viard and Chad Hill propose an interesting tax reform idea.

The WSJ pans the GOP balanced budget plan:

Instead, House Speaker John Boehner plans to offer a vanilla amendment that merely calls for a balanced budget, with no spending limitation or supermajority tax requirements. The Speaker seems to believe, or at least hope, that this might attract enough Democratic votes to pass the amendment (which requires a two-thirds vote in both houses of Congress, plus approval in 38 state legislatures).

On Bloomberg, James Grant predicts the European Central Bank will continue to loosen (h/t: TGSN):

 

In The WSJ, Jason Riley notes Sen. Marco Rubio’s (FL) pro-immigration rhetoric.