This morning, the nation is mourning the loss of one of the most genuinely decent men ever to sit in the Oval Office. Even for his critics, Jimmy Carter was a model of empathy and integrity as an American president. After his presidency, he proved an even greater role model, working tirelessly to help those […]
The Passing and Lessons of Jimmy Carter
The Passing and Lessons of Jimmy Carter
31 Dec 2024 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA
Another one leaves the fold: Steve Pinker resigns from the Freedom from Religion Foundation
30 Dec 2024 Leave a comment
in discrimination, gender, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - USA Tags: Age of Enlightenment, free speech, political correctness, regressive left, sex discrimination
Like me, Steve Pinker has resigned from the Honorary Board of the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF). His resignation was sent yesterday. Steve is a bigger macher than I. both intellectually and, in this case, because he was Honorary President of that Board. I put below his two emails, reproduced with permission. The first one […]
Another one leaves the fold: Steve Pinker resigns from the Freedom from Religion Foundation
A third one leaves the fold: Richard Dawkins resigns from the Freedom from Religion Foundation
30 Dec 2024 1 Comment
in discrimination, gender, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - USA Tags: Age of Enlightenment, gender gap, political correctness, regressive left, sex discrimination
Well, that makes three of us. Steve Pinker, I, and now Richard Dawkins, have all decided independently to resign from the Honorary Board of the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF). The organization’s ideological capture, as instantiated in throwing in their lot with extreme gender activism and censoring any objection to their views—as well as in […]
A third one leaves the fold: Richard Dawkins resigns from the Freedom from Religion Foundation
James E. Carter (1924-2024)
30 Dec 2024 Leave a comment
in economic history, politics - USA
Jimmy Carter, the 39th president of the United States, died today at the age of 100. He was the oldest-ever former president of the United States. It is also worth noting that he was married to Rosalynn Carter for an impressive 77 years. George H.W. Bush was the second-oldest former president, passing at the age […]
James E. Carter (1924-2024)
Top MR Posts of 2024!
30 Dec 2024 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, discrimination, gender, health and safety, human capital, international economics, labour economics, labour supply, occupational choice, politics - USA, poverty and inequality Tags: economics of immigration, gender wage gap, Internet, political correctness, regressive left
The number one post this year was Tyler’s The changes in vibes — why did they happen? A prescient post and worth a re-read. Lots of quotable content that has become conventional wisdom after the election: The ongoing feminization of society has driven more and more men, including black and Latino men, into the Republican […]
Top MR Posts of 2024!
International Regulatory Authority Says California Grid at Risk of Energy Shortfalls
29 Dec 2024 Leave a comment
in economics of climate change, energy economics, environmental economics, environmentalism, global warming, politics - USA Tags: California, solar power, wind power
“With a resource portfolio that includes a substantial amount of solar [panels], the risk of supply shortfall is associated with summer evening periods when demand is high and solar output is diminished.”
International Regulatory Authority Says California Grid at Risk of Energy Shortfalls
What is a woman? My discussion on a Freedom From Religion Foundation website
29 Dec 2024 Leave a comment
in discrimination, gender, law and economics, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - USA Tags: free speech, gender gap, political correctness, regressive left, sex discrimination

So here’s the story. I’m not only a member and supporter of the Freedom From Religion Foundation, but am also on its Honorary Board. Thus I was doubly distressed when I saw the post below on their website Freethought Now!, a post that completely ignores the widely-accepted biological definition of a woman—one based on the […]
What is a woman? My discussion on a Freedom From Religion Foundation website
On Trump On Panama Canal Fees
29 Dec 2024 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, international economics, International law, politics - USA Tags: 2024 presidential election, tarrifs

TweetThis letter of mine appears in today’s New York Times: To the Editor: Donald Trump complains that the fees Panama charges for ships to use its canal are a “complete ‘rip-off.’” How mysterious. Given Mr. Trump’s belief that “the most beautiful word in the dictionary is ‘tariff,’” he should be pleased that these fees are…
On Trump On Panama Canal Fees
More Police, Fewer Prisons, and Other Ways to Reduce Crime
29 Dec 2024 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economics of crime, human capital, labour economics, labour supply, law and economics, occupational choice, politics - USA Tags: crime and punishment, criminal deterrence, law and order
What does the existing research evidence say about how to reduce crime? Jennifer Doleac offers and over overview in “Why Crime Matters, and What to Do About It.” It appear as an essay in a book published by the Aspen Economic Strategy Group, Strengthening America’s Economic Dynamism, edited by Melissa Kearney and Luke Pardue. You…
More Police, Fewer Prisons, and Other Ways to Reduce Crime
Our Lying Eyes: New Photo Shows Biden with Hunter ‘s Business Associates Despite Past Denials
28 Dec 2024 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA Tags: 2024 presidential election
“Lies.” That response was a mantra for President Joe Biden, who denied ever meeting or knowing about his son’s foreign dealings. Despite the pronounced lack of interest by most media outlets in the alleged multimillion dollar influence-peddling scheme, the House and conservative groups have doggedly pursued the matter and found overwhelming evidence that the President […]
Our Lying Eyes: New Photo Shows Biden with Hunter ‘s Business Associates Despite Past Denials
Trump just wants to copy NZ citizenship law
28 Dec 2024 Leave a comment
in International law, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, politics - USA
Politico reports: Donald Trump’s team is crafting an executive order to end birthright citizenship for the children of undocumented immigrants, a monumental move the president-elect’s allies say is a key step in their long-term strategy: getting the issue before the Supreme Court. The effect of Trump’s order would be to exclude the children of undocumented […]
Trump just wants to copy NZ citizenship law
The New FDA and the Regulation of Laboratory Developed Tests
28 Dec 2024 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economics of bureaucracy, economics of regulation, health economics, politics - USA, Public Choice Tags: drug lags
The FDA under President Trump and new FDA head Martin Makary should rapidly reverse the FDA’s powergrab on laboratory developed tests. To recap, laboratory developed tests (LDTs) are the kind your doctor orders, they are a service not a product and are not sold directly to patients. Congress has never given the FDA the authority […]
The New FDA and the Regulation of Laboratory Developed Tests
“This Orange County…They Don’t Play”: California’s Tougher Shoplifting Law Receives Curious Endorsement
27 Dec 2024 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economics of crime, Gary Becker, law and economics, politics - USA Tags: crime and punishment, criminal deterrence, law and order

Proposition 36, which increases punishments for some retail theft and drug possession offenses, overwhelmingly passed in California despite the opposition of Gov. Gavin Newsom and most Democrats. Newsom denounced the measure as something that “takes us back to the 1980s, mass incarceration.” Despite discussing her tough-on-crime record in the election, Vice President Kamala Harris refused […]
“This Orange County…They Don’t Play”: California’s Tougher Shoplifting Law Receives Curious Endorsement
Biden’s Curious Capital Punishment Stance is Vintage Biden
26 Dec 2024 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA Tags: capital punishment, crime and punishment, criminal deterrence, law and order

The decision of President Joe Biden to clear the federal death row has caused an uproar in some quarters and praise in others. There are good-faith arguments on both sides. However, there was a curious element to the Biden pardons for 37 people on death row. There were 40 people on death row. Three remain.
Biden’s Curious Capital Punishment Stance is Vintage Biden

Recent Comments