Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
25 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economics of information, economics of regulation, human capital, income redistribution, labour economics, labour supply, occupational choice, occupational regulation, politics - USA, Public Choice, rentseeking
The potential benefit of having the government require that certain jobs require an official license is quality control and protection. Personally, I rather like knowing that my nurse or doctor or dentist has gone through courses and training. The potential cost is that requirement to have a government license can become a way for those…
Occupational Licensing: US and International
25 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of climate change, economics of regulation, energy economics, environmental economics, environmentalism, global warming, politics - New Zealand Tags: carbon tax, carbon trading
New Zealand’s Emissions Trading Scheme includes industrial allocations of carbon credits aimed at avoiding inefficient carbon leakage.But the formula is wrong. Imagine that you’re a domestic firm producing stuff that generates CO2 emissions. You correctly have to surrender NZU – one for each tonne of emissions. But if competitors in foreign markets do not face a…
Just fix industrial allocations
25 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economic growth, economic history, entrepreneurship, macroeconomics
From Verónica Bäcker-Peral and Benjamin Wittenbrink of MIT: Measuring real GDP growth requires distinguishing changes in prices from changes in product quality and composition, yet systematic quality adjustment of price indexes is unavailable for much of the twentieth century. We construct a new quality-adjusted price index for U.S. consumer goods using 5.1 million product listings…
Cataloging Growth: A Re-Evaluation of 1900–1990
24 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of regulation, energy economics, entrepreneurship, politics - New Zealand
New Zealand’s electricity companies know how to stick a pipe into the ground in the Taupo Volcanic Zone and generate electricity. They’ve been doing it for decades, and there is enormous untapped potential. America’s hyperscalers are currently willing to pay a large premium for immediacy. They are sticking expensive off-grid generators beside datacentres that would have…
Let them build: electricity and datacentres edition
24 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in behavioural economics, history of economic thought
Paul Krugman described behavioural economics as the most important innovation in the economics discipline for half a century.[1] Three decades ago, I reviewed The Winner’s Curse: Paradoxes and Anomalies of Economic Life by Richard Thaler which reported behaviour which appeared anomalous according to the economist’s standard model of ‘rational economic man’. Anomalies are at the heart of scientific […]
The Winner’s Curse: Behavioural Economics Anomalies Then and Now
23 Jul 2026 1 Comment
in applied price theory, fiscal policy, income redistribution, labour economics, labour supply, macroeconomics, politics - New Zealand, poverty and inequality, Public Choice, welfare reform
A Universal Basic Income, or UBI, is a superficially attractive idea. Under such a scheme, every adult would receive a regular payment from the government, regardless of income, employment or need. Supporters argue that it would reduce poverty, simplify welfare, provide security in an uncertain labour market and give people greater freedom to choose how […]
The Case Against a Universal Basic Income
23 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economic growth, fiscal policy, macroeconomics
Below is my column in the New York Post on the sharp decline in millionaires in New York, costing the…
“Start Spreadin’ the News”: New York Losing Billions as Millionaires Flee the Big Apple
23 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in Marxist economics, politics - USA
Below is my column on Fox.com about the growing condemnation of capitalism in the Democratic Party as establishment figures such…
The Rise of the Champagne Socialists: Democratic Leaders Join Socialists in Criticizing Capitalism
22 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in defence economics, laws of war, war and peace Tags: Iraq, Syria
(Turkish-backed Syrian rebels stand on the back of a truck at Manbij countryside, December 29, 2018. Turkey-backed rebels have been mobilizing for an attack on Manbij in nearby areas that have been under Turkey’s control since it swept into northern Syria in 2016, part of its effort to roll back the YPG). Syria is a […]
DAYS OF LOVE AND RAGE: A STORY OF ORDINARY PEOPLE FORGING A REVOLUTION by Anand Gopal
22 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
Envy is not simply the desire to possess what another person has. It is the painful awareness that someone else possesses an advantage—wealth, talent, beauty, status or success—that we lack. In its most destructive form, envy does not merely say, “I wish I had what he has.” It says, “Since I cannot have it, I […]
Nozick on equality and envy
22 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in transport economics, urban economics
NPR reports that the Department of Transportation has deleted bike lanes and four other practices from its list of “proven safety measures.” Bike advocates complain that the “administration has clearly decided to reject science and abdicate its role as the stewards of transportation safety.” Photo by Gene Bisbee. But just … Continue reading →
US DOT Amends List of Safety Measures
21 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in human capital, labour economics, labour supply, politics - USA Tags: economics of immigration
TweetHere’s a letter to the Financial Times. Editor: Oren Cass’s attempt to discredit economists’ support for a policy of liberal immigration is flawed (“Mass immigration is not the silver bullet economists think it is,” July 10). For example, consider this question that he poses rhetorically: “If employers believe they will always have access to a…
Oren Cass Again Swings and Misses in His Attempt to Discredit Economists
21 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in discrimination, economics of crime, gender, law and economics, politics - New Zealand
Paul Goldsmith announced: A re-elected National Government will modernise sexual consent laws to specify there must always be a “yes,” rather than an absence of a “no,” National’s Justice spokesperson Paul Goldsmith says. “National is focused on fixing the basics in law and order, and modernising our consent laws is an important part of that.…
Goldsmith on consent laws
21 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, labour economics, labour supply, population economics Tags: economics of fertility
The Institute for Family Studies puts up a pro-natal proposal that I’d not seen before.Most of the literature I’ve seen on baby bonuses suggests that the amount on offer would have to be hefty to have substantive effects. This version could harness a bit of loss aversion:President Trump launched a small savings account seeded with…
Pronatal policies
20 Jul 2026 1 Comment
in defence economics, war and peace Tags: Nazi Germany, World War II
The July 20 Plot, also known as Operation Valkyrie, represents one of the most significant assassination attempts against Adolf Hitler during World War II. This bold initiative was led by a group of senior German officers who, driven by a mix of moral indignation and practical considerations, aimed to eliminate the Führer and put an […]
Operation Valkyrie: The July 20, 1944 Plot
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
A History of the Alt-Right
Econ Prof at George Mason University, Economic Historian, Québécois
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
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Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
Why Evolution is True is a blog written by Jerry Coyne, centered on evolution and biology but also dealing with diverse topics like politics, culture, and cats.
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
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Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
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Commentary on monetary policy in the spirit of R. G. Hawtrey
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Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
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Reading between the lines, and underneath the hype.
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"The British constitution has always been puzzling, and always will be." --Queen Elizabeth II
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
WORLD WAR II, MUSIC, HISTORY, HOLOCAUST
Undisciplined scholar, recovering academic
Celebrating humanity's flourishing through the spread of capitalism and the rule of law
Res ipsa loquitur - The thing itself speaks
In Hume’s spirit, I will attempt to serve as an ambassador from my world of economics, and help in “finding topics of conversation fit for the entertainment of rational creatures.”
Researching the House of Commons, 1832-1868
Reflections on books and art
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