I’ve written endlessly about the negative effect of high tax rates on productive behavior, as well as some quirky examples of how taxes lead to some unintended consequences. Today, let’s consider how government regulations distort behavior. We’ll start with a video from Reason about government policies that backfire. In this case, note the second example. […]
Radio NZ reports: But the Greens’ commerce and consumer affairs spokesperson Ricardo Menéndez March told RNZ that was only “one part of the puzzle” and the government needed to explore all its options – including breaking up the supermarket duopoly. “While we support having new players in the market, Nicola Willis is banking on big […]
Richard Prebble writes: A Royal Commission is our nation’s highest form of inquiry, reserved for the most important issues. To ensure confidence in its findings, commissioners have the power to summon witnesses and take their evidence in public under oath. In my research, apart from health reasons, the only person to have ever refused to […]
Don Brash writes – In recent years, when addressing Rotary and other audiences, I often talk about the five big challenges facing New Zealand – persistently slow growth in productivity, and therefore in income levels; ridiculously unaffordable house prices; the increasing division of our society into those with a Maori ancestor and those without; the […]
By Paul Homewood Why is the price of electricity so high? It’s a puzzle, because successive politicians (Blair, Cameron, May, Johnson and now Starmer and Miliband) and lots of lobbyists have told us we should have expected quite the opposite: cheap energy, to be achieved by getting out of fossil fuels. First exit […]
Javier Milei has generated amazingly good results in just 20 months. But more reform is needed to undo the damage of 80 years of Peronism, which is why I explain that Argentina’s mid-term elections will be very important. Milei wants to turn Argentina into the world’s freest economy. That won’t be possible so long as […]
Winston Peters announced: Cabinet has formally agreed this week to the closure of the greyhound racing industry in New Zealand. A bill will be drafted to bring this decision into law. The move follows last December’s announcement of the Government’s in-principle decision to end greyhound racing as of 31 July 2026. The decision was made […]
New Zealand will be banning greyhound racing. The Bill to formally end greyhound racing will be introduced to Parliament later this year. The public will be able to make submissions to the select committee as part of the process.“It is important people get the opportunity to have their say. The decision to end greyhound racing was…
I’m back in Argentina, the South American country with the world’s best leader. What Javier Milei has accomplished is amazing. And the economic effects have been wonderful. One of my meetings earlier this week was with Marcelo Elizondo, the head of the International Chamber of Commerce for Argentina. He shared a presentation with me that […]
EID covers the legal thrashing visited upon Charleston plaintiffs seeking a judgment punishing Big Oil for their role in climate misfortunes. The article is Judge Shuts Down Charleston Climate Case, Warns of “Boundless” Liability. Excerpts in italics with my bolds and added images. A South Carolina judge has dismissed Charleston’s climate lawsuit, delivering a decisive setback […]
The Tenth Circuit handed down a notable opinion this week in Poe v. Drummond, upholding Oklahoma’s law prohibiting gender transition procedures for anyone under eighteen. The opinion by Judge Joel Carson (joined by Judges Harris Hartz and Gregory Phillips) concluded that parental rights do not trump a state’s determination of what are safe treatments for […]
Ani O’Brien writes – Chlöe Swarbrick wants you to believe the Government is intentionally increasing homelessness. She told RNZ’s Mata with Mihingarangi Forbes: “The only conclusion that I can really come to is that this Government has intentionally increased homelessness…” It’s the kind of soundbite that plays well on social media. Outrage travels faster than nuance, and a […]
Another blow against free speech in Canada reported in rightforcanada article Carney defends internet censorship bill, tells Canadians to rely on CBC for news. Excerpts in italics with my bolds and added images. PM Mark Carney dismissed concerns over Bill C-18’s restrictions on sharing news on social media, promoting the Liberal-funded CBC as the primary […]
Why Evolution is True is a blog written by Jerry Coyne, centered on evolution and biology but also dealing with diverse topics like politics, culture, and cats.
In Hume’s spirit, I will attempt to serve as an ambassador from my world of economics, and help in “finding topics of conversation fit for the entertainment of rational creatures.”
“We do not believe any group of men adequate enough or wise enough to operate without scrutiny or without criticism. We know that the only way to avoid error is to detect it, that the only way to detect it is to be free to inquire. We know that in secrecy error undetected will flourish and subvert”. - J Robert Oppenheimer.
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