Long ago, I co-blogged for EconLog with Arnold Kling. Now he’s running a book club for Liberty Fund. Last month, Arnold invited me and philosopher Rachel Ferguson to discuss Mike Huemer’s new Progressive Myths. Enjoy!
*Progressive Myths*: The Kling Club Convo
*Progressive Myths*: The Kling Club Convo
14 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, comparative institutional analysis, constitutional political economy, economic history, entrepreneurship, history of economic thought, income redistribution, industrial organisation, labour economics, law and economics, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - USA, property rights, Public Choice, rentseeking Tags: The Great Enrichment
Spot on
14 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in economics of education, liberalism, Marxist economics, political change, politics - Australia, politics - New Zealand, politics - USA Tags: free speech, political correctness, regressive left
Bill Maher presents new posters
13 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in politics - USA, television, TV shows Tags: Age of Enlightenment, free speech, political correctness, regressive left
The latest 8-9 minute comedy/news bit hasn’t yet been posted on YouTube, but there is a two-minute chuckle on new posters reflecting America’s new set of allies. It’s called “Rosie the Pivoter,” and here it is:
Bill Maher presents new posters
Walz Leads Effort to Block the “No Duty to Retreat” Rule in Acts of Self-Defense
13 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA, property rights Tags: crime and punishment, law and order
Gov. Tim Walz has never appeared burdened by legal niceties or accuracy in pushing his agenda, including his anti-free speech policies. However, his recent effort to block an effort to enact a “no duty to retreat” rule for self-defense hit a new low. Walz completely misrepresented not only the underlying bill, HF 13, but ignored […]
Walz Leads Effort to Block the “No Duty to Retreat” Rule in Acts of Self-Defense
Trump Doubles Down on Protectionist Failure
12 Mar 2025 1 Comment
in applied price theory, industrial organisation, international economics, politics - USA, survivor principle Tags: 2024 presidential election, tarrifs
I shared a “Trade 101 for Trumpies” presentation last month in hopes of educating people about the foolishness of protectionism. Perhaps it should have been a remedial class because the president has just announced another increase in taxes on steel and aluminum from Canada. This is insanely bad economic policy for the simple reason that […]
Trump Doubles Down on Protectionist Failure
Inability to understand te reo Māori does not prevent people from asking questions about race relations in New Zealand
12 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in discrimination, economic history, income redistribution, International law, law and economics, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice, rentseeking Tags: Age of Enlightenment, constitutional law, free speech, political correctness, racial discrimination, regressive left
Ananish Chaudhuri writes – Dame Anne Salmond recently wrote a column on Newsroom berating people for having views on the Treaty of Waitangi when they cannot even read the Māori version of the treaty. So, what she is saying is that even when customs, laws or treaties impinge on your daily life, you cannot hold any views […]
Inability to understand te reo Māori does not prevent people from asking questions about race relations in New Zealand
SEC Climate Risk Rule is Entrapment
11 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in economic history, economics of climate change, economics of regulation, environmental economics, environmentalism, financial economics, global warming, law and economics, politics - USA, property rights Tags: climate activists, efficient markets hypothesis
Stone Washington and William Happer explain the nefarious and ill-advised decree in their article SEC’s Climate Risk Disclosure Rule Would Compel Companies to Make Scientifically False and Misleading Disclosures. Excerpts in italics with my bolds and added images. In March last year, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued its climate risk disclosure rule, called “The […]
SEC Climate Risk Rule is Entrapment
US AID, current status
11 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in development economics, economics of bureaucracy, politics - USA, Public Choice Tags: 2024 presidential election, overseas aid
After a 6 week review we are officially cancelling 83% of the programs at USAID. The 5200 contracts that are now cancelled spent tens of billions of dollars in ways that did not serve, (and in some cases even harmed), the core national interests of the United States. In consultation with Congress, we intend for […]
US AID, current status
The WaPo describes (and distorts) a big “culture war” in New Zealand
10 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in defence economics, discrimination, economic history, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice Tags: affirmative action, Age of Enlightenment, constitutional law, free speech, media bias, political correctness, racial discrimination, regressive left
ADDENDUM: See added comments and clarifications under “addendum” at bottom. ******************** I’ve written many times about the battle of the indigenous people in New Zealand (the Māori) to get their “way of knowing”—which includes a lot of superstition and unreliable word-of-mouth “knowledge,” as well as legends and morality—adopted as official policy or as a “way […]
The WaPo describes (and distorts) a big “culture war” in New Zealand
My Former Economics MPhil and DPhil Class-Mate for many hard years, Mark Carney, becomes PM of Canada.
10 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in business cycles, economic history, economics of bureaucracy, economics of education, history of economic thought, human capital, inflation targeting, labour economics, labour supply, macroeconomics, monetary economics, occupational choice, politics - New Zealand, Public Choice Tags: Canada, monetary policy
Congratulations Mark Carney. When I went to the UK to study economics, we started off doing a degree called Master of Philosophy in…
My Former Economics MPhil and DPhil Class-Mate for many hard years, Mark Carney, becomes PM of Canada.
Gavin Newsom breaks with “progressive” Democrats, proclaims that trans-identified men competing in women’s sports is “unfair”
10 Mar 2025 1 Comment
in discrimination, economics of education, gender, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - USA Tags: Age of Enlightenment, free speech, political correctness, regressive left, sex discrimination
It’s not only unconscionable for “progressive” Democrats to cheer on trans-identified males (“transwomen”) who compete in women’s sports, but that behavior certainly hurt the Democrats, especially because most Americans, including Democrats, think that this kind of participation should be forbidden: A recent New York Times/Ipsos survey found the vast majority of Americans, including a majority…
Gavin Newsom breaks with “progressive” Democrats, proclaims that trans-identified men competing in women’s sports is “unfair”
Bill Maher’s New Rule: Guilt by Civilization
09 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in development economics, discrimination, economic history, economics of crime, economics of education, law and economics, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - New Zealand, politics - USA, property rights, television, TV shows Tags: Age of Enlightenment, free speech, political correctness, regressive left, The Great Enrichment
For some reason Bill Maher’s latest comedy/news video, “New Rules: Guilt by Civilization”, is age-restricted (it must be the photo of Bianca Censori in her see-through outfit) , but you can see it by clicking either here or on the “Watch on YouTube” line below. The beginning is great, as Maher claims that the Democrats […]
Bill Maher’s New Rule: Guilt by Civilization
Women’s rights vs men’s demands
09 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in discrimination, economics of education, gender, law and economics, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - Australia, property rights Tags: conjecture and refutation, free speech, philosophy of science, political correctness, regressive left, sex discrimination
It’s still International Women’s Day in some parts of the world. There are still people who believe their feelings about their gender can trump biological facts. There are still people who risk their jobs if they question gender ideology. But there are also people fighting back, among them is Sall Grover: The founder of a […]
Women’s rights vs men’s demands
Bernanke on inflation targeting
09 Mar 2025 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, budget deficits, business cycles, economic growth, economic history, financial economics, fiscal policy, history of economic thought, inflation targeting, labour economics, macroeconomics, monetary economics, politics - New Zealand, unemployment Tags: monetary policy
Former chairman of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors (and FOMC), Ben Bernanke, was yesterday the first of two keynote speakers at the Reserve Bank’s conference to mark 35 years of inflation targeting, which first became a formalised thing here in New Zealand. He indicated that he’d be speaking about inflation targeting in general and […]
Bernanke on inflation targeting
Utopia, you are standing in it! 
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