Derek Grier

Rome handed out free grain to 40,000 citizens in 73 BC. By 46 BC, Julius Caesar found 320,000 people lining up for their monthly ration. That eight-fold expansion happened in under three decades, and it shows you how welfare states actually grow. No Roman senator stood up and announced a plan to addict a third of the city to government bread. It happened incrementally, through political competition. Each magistrate who wanted votes expanded eligibility. Each expansion normalized the next one. The citizen who once considered the dole shameful eventually expected it, then demanded it, then organized politically to protect it. This is the core mechanism free market thinkers have identified across every era: once you create a transfer program, you create a constituency for that program. Recipients vote. Administrators build careers. Grain merchants who supply the state develop a stake in keeping the contracts flowing. The political economy locks in. Caesar, to his credit, actually cut the rolls back to 150,000 through verification audits. It was one of his more economically coherent moves, though the Senate still murdered him. His successors quietly let the numbers climb again. What did the dole require? Massive grain imports from Sicily, Sardinia, and Egypt, organized through state logistics at state expense, funded by taxation and conquest. When the conquest revenue dried up, the obligation remained. Rome had written a check against future military success, and future military success eventually failed to arrive. The lesson is not complicated. Distribute a benefit and you distribute dependency. Distribute dependency and you distribute political power to whoever controls the distribution. The grain dole didn't weaken Rome overnight, but it made every subsequent reform politically impossible.

Two good Samaritans jumped into action after witnessing a 70-year-old man get knocked to the ground in an attempted robbery inside a Tucson fast-food restaurant. Instead of freezing up and standing still, the two witnesses jumped in and stopped the suspect from stealing the elderly man's backpack after knocking his walker to the ground. Officers were able to quickly locate and arrest the 34-year-old suspect within minutes, charging him with attempted robbery. The victim was treated for his injuries at the scene, and police say the quick actions of bystanders played a key role in stopping the crime.

HUGE win for MO in the fight against professional license regs, my #HB1719 has PASSED! The bill 1) eliminates arbitrary age rqmnts 2) sunrise on new regulations 3) reduce admin process 4) reduce hair braiding rqmnts 5) improves reciprocity #MOLEG @senatorshoshana @RepRobertRoss

Why don’t you guys eliminate fraud before asking for more money?

I’m not asking you, I’m telling you. Take a moment and listen to this 81 second response from Victor Glover after being asked if he had any thoughts leading up to Easter. I don’t quite think it can be overstated how perfect this crew is for the job.