Martin Gurri has a very good, deep-dive on the current situation in Cuba. The wreckage of the Cuban economy really can’t be exaggerated. The perpetual blackouts are an apt symbol of a country that is headed for the dark ages. For the first time since the revolution, Cuba is begging the United Nations for food aid. Nearly […]
Cuba Libre
Cuba Libre
05 Apr 2024 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, comparative institutional analysis, constitutional political economy, development economics, economic history, economics of bureaucracy, economics of crime, growth disasters, history of economic thought, human capital, income redistribution, industrial organisation, labour economics, labour supply, law and economics, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - USA, poverty and inequality, Public Choice, public economics, rentseeking Tags: Cuba
The Big Lie Behind DEI
04 Apr 2024 Leave a comment
in discrimination, economic history, economics of bureaucracy, gender, human capital, labour economics, labour supply, law and economics, liberalism, Marxist economics, occupational choice, politics - USA, poverty and inequality, Public Choice Tags: affirmative action, Age of Enlightenment, free speech, political correctness, racial discrimination, regressive left, sex discrimination
Below is an article describing how the woke industry started and expanded by advancing a fundamental lie about human happiness and social fairness. The image above calls attention to the notion that sorts individuals into classes and attributes inequalities in status or prosperity to oppression by others. The lie is that any disappointment or disadvantage […]
The Big Lie Behind DEI
Housing affordability oz
03 Apr 2024 Leave a comment
in income redistribution, Public Choice, rentseeking, transport economics, urban economics
Anthony Willy on the SOE case and partnership fiction
01 Apr 2024 Leave a comment
in comparative institutional analysis, constitutional political economy, economic history, International law, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice, public economics Tags: constitutional law
Former Judge and barrister Anthony Willy has an excellent post on the famous SOE case which is held up to have decided that the Treaty of Waitangi was a partnership. He demolishes this argument by quoting, well the actual judgment. The case was about acting in good faith. Well worth a read.
Anthony Willy on the SOE case and partnership fiction
Spotlight on the Courts
01 Apr 2024 Leave a comment
in economics of bureaucracy, income redistribution, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice, public economics, rentseeking Tags: constitutional law
Muriel Newman writes – “Houston, we have a problem!” New Zealand’s Supreme Court – the highest court in our land – has been captured by activist judges. What is heartening, is the emergence of a wide range of eminent legal voices all openly criticising the Court and calling for this problem to be addressed. But […]
Spotlight on the Courts
Biden’s Signature Climate Law Has a Major Achilles’ Heel — And Dems Are Making It Worse
31 Mar 2024 Leave a comment
in economics of bureaucracy, economics of regulation, energy economics, environmental economics, global warming, politics - USA, Public Choice Tags: land supply, solar power, wind power, zoning
…you can’t get anything built because of these statutes,” Mike McKenna, a Republican strategist with extensive experience in and around the energy sector, told the DCNF about Congressional gridlock on permitting reform.
Biden’s Signature Climate Law Has a Major Achilles’ Heel — And Dems Are Making It Worse
Cheat sheet
29 Mar 2024 Leave a comment
in economics of education, income redistribution, liberalism, Marxist economics, Public Choice, Rawls and Nozick, rentseeking Tags: Age of Enlightenment, free speech, political correctness, regressive left
Universal Basic Income: The Freiman-Caplan Debate
27 Mar 2024 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, applied welfare economics, fiscal policy, human capital, income redistribution, labour economics, labour supply, macroeconomics, politics - USA, poverty and inequality, Public Choice Tags: child poverty, family poverty, negative income tax
As expected, I really enjoyed the Institute for Liberal Studies’ UBI debate between myself and Chris Freiman. Chris was definitely the least enthusiastic UBI supporter I’ve debated. All the way to the point of, “Given all the truly promising ideas we have, and the downside risks of the UBI, perhaps I shouldn’t even publicly defend…
Universal Basic Income: The Freiman-Caplan Debate
“As A True Marxist…”
26 Mar 2024 Leave a comment
in income redistribution, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - New Zealand, Public Choice Tags: regressive left, Watermelons
So said the Green MP Ricardo Menendez March about himself in Parliament the other day when rising to speak about a bill. As DPF archly noted on his Kiwiblog, you can bet your bottom dollar that the MSM will refuse to term him as “Far Left” in the way they term ACT or even Winston as […]
“As A True Marxist…”
How credible is the Milei plan?
24 Mar 2024 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, budget deficits, business cycles, development economics, economic growth, financial economics, fiscal policy, growth disasters, income redistribution, international economics, macroeconomics, monetary economics, Public Choice, public economics Tags: Argentina
Here is a good Substack essay by Nicolas Cachanosky, excerpt: Inflation expectations depend on what is expected to happen to the budget in the months to come. It is natural, then, to ask whether the observed surpluses are sustainable in the months ahead. Answering this question requires looking at two things. First, how was the fiscal […]
How credible is the Milei plan?
Eat the Rich: Warren Plan Would Impose Wealth Tax, Captivity Tax, and $100 Billion for Increasing Tax Audits
23 Mar 2024 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, applied welfare economics, economic growth, fiscal policy, income redistribution, labour economics, labour supply, macroeconomics, poverty and inequality, Public Choice, public economics Tags: taxation and entrepreneurship, taxation and investment, taxation and labour supply
The wealth tax is back. We have previously discussed the constitutional and policy concerns surrounding the push by Democrats like Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.) to introduce a wealth tax that would start with billionaires. It would not likely end there. The law would also apply the same type of California approach to wealthy families […]
Eat the Rich: Warren Plan Would Impose Wealth Tax, Captivity Tax, and $100 Billion for Increasing Tax Audits
ROGER PARTRIDGE: HOW TO REIN IN AN ACTIVIST SUPREME COURT
22 Mar 2024 Leave a comment
in comparative institutional analysis, constitutional political economy, economic history, economics of bureaucracy, law and economics, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice Tags: constitutional law, rule of law
My earlier column this month, New Zealand’s highest court could be facing a turning point, prompted a flood of feedback from business readers and lawyers alike. A common query was what Parliament can do to restrain an overreaching judiciary. This week I discuss two steps Parliament should not hesitate to take. But first a quick recap. The…
ROGER PARTRIDGE: HOW TO REIN IN AN ACTIVIST SUPREME COURT
Do Me a Personal Favor: Please Pre-Order *Build, Baby, Build* Now
22 Mar 2024 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, applied welfare economics, comparative institutional analysis, constitutional political economy, economics of bureaucracy, economics of regulation, income redistribution, law and economics, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - USA, property rights, Public Choice, public economics, rentseeking Tags: land supply, zoning
I started writing Build, Baby, Build: The Science and Ethics of Housing Regulation, in the early weeks of Covid. Now, with the kind cooperation of the Cato Institute, my second non-fiction graphic novel releases on May 1, 2024. That’s less than six weeks away.The official coverPlease forgive my laughable arrogance, but I assure you that…
Do Me a Personal Favor: Please Pre-Order *Build, Baby, Build* Now
Europe’s Wind Industry Collapse Leaves Wind Power Cult Searching For New False Idols
21 Mar 2024 Leave a comment
in energy economics, environmental economics, global warming, Public Choice, rentseeking Tags: European Union, solar power, wind power
Wind power acolytes exhibit all the hallmarks of a cult. 20 years on, and anyone with critical faculties can explain in a sentence why wind power will never amount to meaningful power generation source. But the cultist still believes – running on a mix of blind faith, ignorance and blissful stupidity. Cults are never big […]
Europe’s Wind Industry Collapse Leaves Wind Power Cult Searching For New False Idols
Utopia, you are standing in it! 
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