The Australian Green party has proposed cancelling all student debt in Australia, as part of an aim for government to provide “free education for life”. However, free education is not free. In an article in The Conversation earlier this month, Bruce Chapman (Australian National University) makes a case against the claim that cancelling student debt…
Try as they might, the Australian Green party can’t make university education free
Try as they might, the Australian Green party can’t make university education free
25 Nov 2024 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economics of education, human capital, income redistribution, labour economics, labour supply, liberalism, Marxist economics, occupational choice, politics - Australia, poverty and inequality, Public Choice, public economics, rentseeking Tags: College premium, regressive left
Justice Department Indicts Alleged Swatters of Turley, Members of Congress, and Others
25 Nov 2024 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA Tags: crime and punishment, law and order
Yesterday, I was notified by the Justice Department confirming that a recent swatting indictment includes the person or persons responsible for my own swatting a year ago. One of the defendants, Thomasz Szabo, was arrested a couple weeks ago.
Justice Department Indicts Alleged Swatters of Turley, Members of Congress, and Others
The Treaty Principles debate: Parliament is having a third go at addressing this conundrum
25 Nov 2024 Leave a comment
in economics of bureaucracy, income redistribution, International law, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice, rentseeking Tags: constitutional law
Muriel Newman writes- ACT’s Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill was tabled in Parliament on November 7, and the first reading debate was held on November 14. The Bill was referred to the Justice Select Committee, where a closing date for submissions of 7 January 2024 has been set – full details can be found HERE. This […]
The Treaty Principles debate: Parliament is having a third go at addressing this conundrum
Automakers’ Costly Gamble on EVs: A Lesson in Ignoring Consumer Demand
25 Nov 2024 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economics of bureaucracy, economics of regulation, energy economics, environmental economics, global warming, politics - USA, Public Choice, transport economics Tags: electric cars
Ultimately, the market will decide the winners and losers. Automakers that prioritize consumer satisfaction over government market manipulation will thrive, while those that gambled on an uncertain future may find themselves scrambling to survive. Tesla’s trajectory proves that it’s possible to innovate without compromising, and the rest of the industry would be wise to take notes.
Automakers’ Costly Gamble on EVs: A Lesson in Ignoring Consumer Demand
Guest Post: Response to Max Harris
24 Nov 2024 1 Comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, International law, law and economics, laws of war, politics - New Zealand, war and peace Tags: Gaza Strip, Israel, Middle-East politics, regressive left, war against terror
A guest post by Lucy Rogers: On 8 November 2024 Max Harris wrote an op ed for The Dominion Post on the Israel – Lebanon conflict. Harris’ article was profoundly misleading in numerous respects and I immediately wrote a response which was submitted to the editor of the Post on 9 November. To that email […]
Guest Post: Response to Max Harris
Part 3, Australia’s Transition to Renewable Energy
24 Nov 2024 Leave a comment
in energy economics, environmental economics, global warming, politics - Australia Tags: solar power, wind power
Chris Morris is a semi-retired power station engineer in New Zealand who has commented here on No Minister occasionally and on other NZ blogs. In mid 2023 he emailed me about a series of four articles he had written for the blog of Judith Curry in Australia. I published a summary of the key points […]
Part 3, Australia’s Transition to Renewable Energy
Obsession With Unreliable Wind & Solar Drives Punishing Cost of Net-Zero CO2 Delusion
24 Nov 2024 Leave a comment
in energy economics, environmental economics, global warming, politics - Australia Tags: solar power, wind power
Around the globe, the proles are on the march. They’ve worked out that the wind and solar ‘transition’ is the cause of their crushing power bills. In the US, contrary to almost every pundit’s prediction, Donald J Trump stormed home with a very convincing victory, grabbing control of every level of government. Trump’s promise of […]
Obsession With Unreliable Wind & Solar Drives Punishing Cost of Net-Zero CO2 Delusion
Attorney-General and Chief Justice reveal contrasting visions of judicial power
23 Nov 2024 Leave a comment
in comparative institutional analysis, constitutional political economy, economics of crime, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights Tags: constitutional law
Roger Partridge writes – Should judges stick to applying the law, or should they reshape it to reflect society’s values? This fundamental tension over judicial power was laid bare at a New Zealand Law Society webinar this month about what it takes to become a High Court judge. Comments from the country’s two senior legal […]
Attorney-General and Chief Justice reveal contrasting visions of judicial power
The Presidential Bicameral Adjournment Clause Is Almost An American Equivalent to Prorogation
22 Nov 2024 Leave a comment
in politics - USA Tags: constitutional law
An American Connection Over the last thirteen years, I have been pleasantly surprised to find that Parliamentum attracts a surprising number of readers from the United States, about one-quarter to one-third of the total depending on the year. I occasionally write on American topics, but mainly on British North American history and how Canada or […]
The Presidential Bicameral Adjournment Clause Is Almost An American Equivalent to Prorogation
Do the KCs believe in democracy
22 Nov 2024 Leave a comment
in politics - New Zealand Tags: constitutional law
Liam Hehir points out: Forty-two senior lawyers, known as King’s Counsel, have written to the government with a scathing critique of the Treaty Principles Bill. Their letter raises a number of concerns with which I am in full agreement. However, they also make a statement about Parliament’s law-making authority that contains a fundamental and egregious […]
Do the KCs believe in democracy
A cunning plan?
22 Nov 2024 Leave a comment
in politics - USA Tags: 2024 presidential election
There could be a fascinating constitutional stand-off, with Trump’s more controversial Cabinet picks. There are three ways they can be appointed. The third option is one being talked about. It relies on the clause in the constitution that says: He shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the […]
A cunning plan?
Defying cries of “transphobia”, the Washington Post calls for debate on whether trans women should participate in women’s sports
22 Nov 2024 1 Comment
in discrimination, economics of education, gender, law and economics, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - USA, property rights, sports economics Tags: free speech, gender gap, political correctness, regressive left, sex discrimination
The good news is that the Washington Post, defying the inevitable cries that the paper is “transphobic”, is calling for a “respectful debate on trans women in sports”. This is, of course, because of the increasing number of biological men who identify as women (I prefer that jawbreaker to “trans women” because the latter plays […]
Defying cries of “transphobia”, the Washington Post calls for debate on whether trans women should participate in women’s sports
Bret Stephens indicts American universities for placing relevance above excellence
20 Nov 2024 1 Comment
in economics of education, politics - USA Tags: free speech, political correctness, regressive left
A reader called my attention to a new quarterly online magazine called Sapir. It’s edited by the NYT writer Bret Stephens, it’s free, and it has a number of intriguing articles (check out this interview with Daniel Diermeier, our former provost and now chancellor of Vanderbilt University). It also offers a free one-year hard-copy subscription […]
Bret Stephens indicts American universities for placing relevance above excellence
‘Energy-Limited Resources’: Huge Swaths Of America Face Blackout Risks If Winter Is Bitter, Grid Watchdog Warns
19 Nov 2024 1 Comment
in economics of climate change, energy economics, environmental economics, environmentalism, global warming, politics - USA Tags: solar power, wind power
Hundreds of millions of Americans risk experiencing power shortages this winter if weather conditions are harsh, according to a new report published by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), a power grid watchdog.
‘Energy-Limited Resources’: Huge Swaths Of America Face Blackout Risks If Winter Is Bitter, Grid Watchdog Warns
Hikoi organiser rebuffs Seymour while a bloke named Jones (no, not Shane) says he understands the Māori Party’s frustration
19 Nov 2024 Leave a comment
in discrimination, law and economics, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice Tags: constitutional law, free speech, political correctness, racial discrimination, regressive left
Bob Edlin writes – Associate Justice Minister David Seymour “refused” Morning Report’s invitation to be interviewed on RNZ’s Morning Report, the day after the Treaty Principles Bill he is promoting had passed its first reading in Parliament after “a fiery debate and vote”. No matter. There were plenty of other people all too eager to […]
Hikoi organiser rebuffs Seymour while a bloke named Jones (no, not Shane) says he understands the Māori Party’s frustration
Utopia, you are standing in it! 
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