[Robin] Brooks: So let me give you two ways of thinking about what’s going on, both of them are really about trying to think about what kind of risk premia need to be priced in oil, given all the massive uncertainty that we have. The first way that I’ve been thinking about this is—I spent […]
How much more will oil prices have to go up?
How much more will oil prices have to go up?
22 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, defence economics, energy economics, war and peace Tags: Iran, Oil prices
What power would allow Ministers to close down a community?
22 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, economics of religion, law and economics, libertarianism, politics - New Zealand
The Herald reports: Senior Government minister Louise Upston visited Gloriavale in late January, months after refusing to rule out closing the religious community following allegations of child abuse in the community. Newstalk ZB has confirmed Upston visited the sect on January 30, alongside officials from the Ministry of Social Development. This story is puzzling. As…
What power would allow Ministers to close down a community?
The taboo idea you can’t discuss in academia
21 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in labour economics, human capital, economics of education Tags: free speech, IQ, political correctness, racial discrimination, regressive left
My friend the Belgian philosopher Maarten Boudry is writing about what he calls, correctly, “the most dangerous idea in academia”—an idea that can get you banned or even fired if you even suggest it. It is, of course, the notion that different “races” differ on average in IQ or intelligence. It’s such a hot potato…
The taboo idea you can’t discuss in academia
Corrupt pardons
21 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA
Most US Presidents have done dubious pardons – Clinton re Marc Rich and Joe Biden re Hunter Biden etc. But as the libertarian Cato Institute point out, Trump’s pardons are in a different league: Biden’s pardons eliminated roughly $680,000 in financial penalties (fines, restitution, and forfeitures) owed to victims or the government. In contrast, Liz Oyer,…
Corrupt pardons
The True Story of the Great Escape
21 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, International law, law and economics, laws of war, movies, war and peace Tags: Nazi Germany, World War II
During World War II, one of the most daring and ambitious prisoner-of-war (POW) escapes in history took place in the German POW camp Stalag Luft III. Known as “The Great Escape,” Allied airmen executed this remarkable event, which demonstrated extraordinary resilience, ingenuity, and bravery in their pursuit of freedom. While the escape itself was a […]
The True Story of the Great Escape
Some simple spatial analytics of Cape Town
21 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, development economics, economics of regulation, growth disasters, transport economics, urban economics Tags: South Africa
Rio de Janeiro let its hillsides be filled in with lower-cost dwellings. The result was a significant increase in the crime rate. On the more positive side of the ledger, upward mobility increased too. If you live in a decent favela, you can get to a downtown job with not too much difficulty, albeit with…
Some simple spatial analytics of Cape Town
The Wealth of Nations: What’s It all About?
20 Mar 2026 1 Comment
in history of economic thought, Adam Smith
The US semiquincentennial (that is, half of 500 years) will be July 4 of this year, but economists celebrated a 250th anniversary of their own on March 9, marking the original publication date of Adam Smith’s An Inquity into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations. It’s of course fundamentally impossible to sum up…
The Wealth of Nations: What’s It all About?
Prime Ministers in the House of Lords
20 Mar 2026 1 Comment
in constitutional political economy, economic history, Public Choice Tags: British constitutional law, British history, British politics
The retirement of Lord Salisbury in 1902 marked the end of the last premiership undertaken from the House of Lords, but in the nineteenth century, more prime ministers led governments from the Lords than the Commons. In this article, Dr Kathryn Rix, of our House of Commons, 1832-1945 project, explores the history and significance of…
Prime Ministers in the House of Lords
An outrageous legal complaint decision overturned
19 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in discrimination, gender, law and economics, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - New Zealand Tags: free speech, political correctness, regressive left, sex discrimination
An Area Standards Committee of the Law Society fined Stephen Franks and Franks Ogilvy for, well being lawyers. They sent a letter on behalf of their client to health professionals involved in “gender affirming care”. The ASC found that they had “used a legal process for an improper purpose”, censured them and fined them. I…
An outrageous legal complaint decision overturned
The 1943 German law that denies justice to be done.
19 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, International law, law and economics, laws of war, war and peace Tags: extradition, Nazi Germany, World War II
In 1943 a law was passed in Germany which gave all foreign Waffen SS members the German nationality by default. This law still prevents extradition of WWII War criminals to be extradited to their native countries, because these men have the German nationality , and Germany does not extradite it’s own citizens. These are just […]
The 1943 German law that denies justice to be done.
‘Ever-wrong Ehrlich’s’ Greatest Hits (er, misses)
18 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in development economics, economic history, environmentalism, growth disasters, growth miracles, labour economics, labour supply, population economics Tags: pessimism bias, population bomb, population bust
His famous 1968 book, “The Population Bomb,” changed the world. He famously predicted that human “overpopulation” would soon outstrip food supplies, leading to catastrophic famines, and societal collapse. He predicted that hundreds of millions of people would starve to death in the 1970s and 1980s, that India would be unable to feed its population by 1980, and…
‘Ever-wrong Ehrlich’s’ Greatest Hits (er, misses)
From Compromise to Closure: The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill
18 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in constitutional political economy, law and economics Tags: British constitutional law, British politics
The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill has now completed its journey through Parliament. Although peers made several amendments to the bill, the Commons rejected most of them. In the end, the Lords chose not to insist on the rejected amendments by a voice vote, paving the way for Royal Assent. Once that happens, the […]
From Compromise to Closure: The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill
The Māori Seats – History, Not Myth
18 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in constitutional political economy, economic history, politics - New Zealand, Public Choice
Professor Anaru Eketone claims the Māori electorates were a cynical device to suppress Māori political influence.(paywalled) The historical record suggests the opposite: the Māori seats were created to bring Māori into the parliamentary system and guarantee representation, rather than exclude them. By 1867, when the Māori Representation Act 1867(1) passed, Europeans outnumbered Māori roughly four to one. […]
The Māori Seats – History, Not Myth
The Great Enrichment
18 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in economic history, growth disasters, growth miracles
103 ways for local government to save money
17 Mar 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of bureaucracy, politics - New Zealand, Public Choice, public economics
The Taxpayer’s Union has done a report listing 103 ways local government can save money. Some of the more significant ones which I support are: The post 103 ways for local government to save money first appeared on Kiwiblog.
103 ways for local government to save money
Utopia, you are standing in it! 
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