• The Bailout State Is as Old as Rome

    The Bailout State Is as Old as Rome

    More than 2,000 years before America’s bailouts and entitlement programs, the ancient Romans experimented with similar schemes. The Roman government rescued failing institutions, canceled personal debts, and spent huge sums on welfare programs. The result wasn’t pretty. Roman politicians picked winners and losers, generally favoring the politically well connected — a practice that’s central to …