New Zealand offers one of the best case studies on housing policy.
— Alec Stapp (@AlecStapp) April 23, 2025
Auckland made it easier to build housing.
Wellington didn't.
Results speak for themselves: https://t.co/snpoXXWf5N pic.twitter.com/L2hbxUbhMx
Housing affordability
01 May 2025 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economics of regulation, income redistribution, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice, rentseeking, urban economics Tags: housing affordability, land supply, zoning
Bad advice on public sector discount rates
30 Apr 2025 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, applied welfare economics, economics of bureaucracy, politics - New Zealand, Public Choice Tags: discount rates
A couple of months ago now I wrote a post about the new set of discount rates government agencies are supposed to use in undertaking cost-benefit analysis, whether for new spending projects or for regulatory initiatives. The new, radically altered, framework had come into effect from 1 October last year, but with no publicity (except […]
Bad advice on public sector discount rates
Liberals a minority Government again
30 Apr 2025 Leave a comment
As expected the Liberal Party won the Canadian election, but they have fallen short of a majority. Here’s how each party has gone. Liberals Conservatives In a shock though leader Pierre Poilievre lost his seat NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh lost his seat. The NDP has also lost party status in the Parliament. Bloc Quebécois Greens […]
Liberals a minority Government again
Auckland Uni students react to Treaty ‘indoctrination’
29 Apr 2025 Leave a comment
in discrimination, economic history, economics of education, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - New Zealand Tags: free speech, political correctness, racial discrimination, regressive left
Compulsory first-year courses come under fire. Graham Adams writes – This year, the University of Auckland launched mandatory courses focused on a particular view of New Zealand history, Te Tiriti, and indigenous “knowledge systems”— which is to say mātauranga Māori — for all first-year students. It doesn’t matter whether you’re studying engineering, accounting, science or arts, you […]
Auckland Uni students react to Treaty ‘indoctrination’
Why Libertarians Should Vote for Obama (1)
29 Apr 2025 Leave a comment
in liberalism, libertarianism, politics - USA Tags: 2008 presidential election
First, war. War is the antithesis of the libertarian philosophy of consent, voluntarism and trade. With every war in American history Leviathan has grown larger and our liberties have withered. War is the health of the state. And now, fulfilling the dreams of Big Brother, we are in a perpetual war. A country cannot long […]
Why Libertarians Should Vote for Obama (1)
Our Mayor dons a keffiyeh
29 Apr 2025 1 Comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA Tags: Gaza, Israel, Middle-East politics, political correctness, regressive left, war against terror
Ever since the City of Chicago dropped the charges against 26 pro-Palestinian students and two faculty arrested on our campus for trespassing, I’ve wondered whether mayor Brandon Johnson, elected in 2023, has some sympathies for Palestine contrasted with some opprobrium for Israel. (The city also refused to send Chicago cops to take down our encampment, […]
Our Mayor dons a keffiyeh
“This is Not Normal”: Democrats Miss an Obvious Problem with the Arrest of the Wisconsin Judge
28 Apr 2025 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA Tags: 2024 presidential election, economics of immigration
“This is not normal.” Those words from Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., are undeniably true after the arrest of Wisconsin Judge Hannah Dugan. However, the reason it is not normal is far more debatable. Dugan is accused of becoming a lawbreaker in seeking to obstruct an effort to arrest a man wanted by federal authorities. If […]
“This is Not Normal”: Democrats Miss an Obvious Problem with the Arrest of the Wisconsin Judge
Can Trump’s Tariff Offensive Deliver New American Jobs?
28 Apr 2025 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, entrepreneurship, industrial organisation, international economics, politics - USA Tags: 2024 presidential election, free trade, tariffs
By Lauren Weber of The WSJ. Excerpts:”Most economists and other experts are skeptical that job creation will happen on a large scale because planning and building new factories is an incredibly complex and lengthy process. Businesses will be reluctant to do that unless they’re sure the investment is worth it over the long term. A fairly…
Can Trump’s Tariff Offensive Deliver New American Jobs?
Raskin: Trump Officials Can Be Arrested for “Kidnapping” Undocumented Persons
28 Apr 2025 Leave a comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, labour economics, labour supply, law and economics, politics - USA Tags: 2024 presidential election, economics of immigration
For some on the far left, “The Rachel Maddow Show” is a godsend. Otherwise, you would have to go to the subway to compete against others raving about microchips and oligarchies. Just take Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), who went on the show on Friday to explain that Trump officials can now be arrested for “interfering with […]
Raskin: Trump Officials Can Be Arrested for “Kidnapping” Undocumented Persons
‘Rule of Two’ medicines approval needs improving
28 Apr 2025 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economics of bureaucracy, economics of regulation, health economics, politics - New Zealand, Public Choice Tags: drug lags
Eric Crampton writes – Come the next pandemic, we are going to be in the same stupid mess that we were in during the last one. Trusted pharmaceutical regulators overseas, like those in Australia, Canada, Europe, and the UK, will have given provisional approvals for vaccines that are safe. And Kiwis will have to wait, […]
‘Rule of Two’ medicines approval needs improving
Bill Maher’s latest bit: Flirting with fascism
27 Apr 2025 Leave a comment
in politics - USA, television, TV shows Tags: 2024 presidential election
A lot of people came down on Bill Maher for his report about dining with Trump at the White House and, although Maher took Trump to task several times during that visit for the administration’s policies, he had the temerity to confess being surprised that Trump actually was gracious to him in person and even […]
Bill Maher’s latest bit: Flirting with fascism
Weak Essay? Student Rejected by Top Universities Despite Near Perfect Scores and $30 Million App
27 Apr 2025 Leave a comment
in discrimination, economics of education, human capital, labour economics, labour supply, politics - USA Tags: affirmative action, free speech, political correctness, racial discrimination, regressive left
After the Supreme Court declared an end to the use of race criteria in college admissions, many administrators pledged to find a way around the decision. Schools are using essay prompts to flag race while rejecting the use of standardized testing to boost diversity in admissions. In the meantime, these schools are rejecting students with […]
Weak Essay? Student Rejected by Top Universities Despite Near Perfect Scores and $30 Million App
The challenge for Parliament: striking a balance between historic traditions and tikanga
26 Apr 2025 Leave a comment
in law and economics, politics - New Zealand
Peter Dunne writes – A tense and intriguing political chess game is being played out in Parliament’s Privileges Committee at present. It is a game none of those involved can afford to lose, yet inevitably someone will. On the face of it, the issue at hand is whether the spontaneous haka performed by three Te […]
The challenge for Parliament: striking a balance between historic traditions and tikanga
Liberals looking comfortable in Canada
26 Apr 2025 Leave a comment
in politics - USA Tags: Canada
The Canadian election is on Monday (Tuesday NZ time) and the Liberal Party has gone from being 20% behind a few months ago and facing a loss of well over 100 seats to leading in most polls and projected to win re-election. They may not get a majority, which needs 172 seats. Current projections have […]
Liberals looking comfortable in Canada
Supreme Court Hears Major Parental Rights Case Over LGBT Readings
26 Apr 2025 Leave a comment
in discrimination, economics of education, economics of religion, gender, law and economics, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - USA Tags: sex discrimination
Today, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on a major parental rights case in Mahmoud v. Taylor, a challenge to Montgomery County (Md.) requiring their children to participate in instruction that includes LGBTQ+ themes. It is a case that could produce sweeping changes across the county as parents object to the use of public […]
Supreme Court Hears Major Parental Rights Case Over LGBT Readings
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