An email from Don Brash of Hobson’s Pledge explains the plan for its campaign against Māori wards on councils ran into trouble when they used a stock photo of a woman who supports the wards and was very upset when her image was used on billboards. When they learned of her distress they instructed the […]
Inciting abuse
Inciting abuse
08 Aug 2025 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights
Diocletian, the Roman Empire, and Forever Failing Price Controls
08 Aug 2025 1 Comment
in applied price theory, economic history, economics of regulation, history of economic thought Tags: price controls, Roman empire
By Tarnell Brown. At EconLog.”The Roman Empire was in trouble. During the fifty-plus years known as the Crisis of the Third Century (235-284 AD), the throne of Rome changed some 26 times, with the Roman Army engaging in a steady diet of crowning and removing claimants to the throne. These autocrats, known as “barracks emperors,”…
Diocletian, the Roman Empire, and Forever Failing Price Controls
The Indian Wedding
08 Aug 2025 1 Comment
in economics of love and marriage, law and economics Tags: India, marriage and divorce
Another great piece by Samir Varma on Indian marriages—where deep traditions endure, even as subtle revolutions unfold around the edges.. It starts with this kicker: When I told my mother I was marrying my girlfriend, an Italian Jew, she called all my friends in the US asking them to break us up. When that failed, […]
The Indian Wedding
Did the Minnesota housing reform lower housing costs?
07 Aug 2025 1 Comment
in applied price theory, law and economics, politics - USA, property rights, Public Choice, rentseeking, urban economics Tags: housing affordability, land supply, zoning
Yes: In December 2018, Minneapolis became the first U.S. city to eliminate single-family zoning through the Minneapolis 2040 Plan, a landmark reform with a central focus on improving housing affordability. This paper estimates the effect of the Minneapolis 2040 Plan on home values and rental prices. Using a synthetic control approach we find that the […]
Did the Minnesota housing reform lower housing costs?
GUEST POST: On the long-term costs of New Zealand Superannuation: more affordable now?
07 Aug 2025 Leave a comment
in income redistribution, labour economics, politics - New Zealand, Public Choice, public economics Tags: ageing society
A guest post by Michael Littlewood: As New Zealand’s population ages and, in particular, as the proportion of over-65s increases, the cost of New Zealand Superannuation (NZS) is rising. We know that and it doesn’t help us understand the issues to create headlines that catastrophise the expected costs. The pensions payable in the future, public […]
GUEST POST: On the long-term costs of New Zealand Superannuation: more affordable now?
Powerful Chess Opening to Win in 10 Moves! [Works up to 1950 ELO]
07 Aug 2025 Leave a comment
in chess
Peters and Seymour tussle over ‘Maorification’
07 Aug 2025 Leave a comment
in constitutional political economy, economics of regulation, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice Tags: constitutional law
Graham Adams writes – After NZ First leapfrogged Act last month in a Taxpayers’ Union-Curia poll — which led to much media excitement about the party’s rising fortunes — it seemed odd for Winston Peters to be quite so tetchy with journalists seeking his opinion on David Seymour’s views on karakia, traditional Māori prayers or incantations […]
Peters and Seymour tussle over ‘Maorification’
A Great Enrichment
06 Aug 2025 Leave a comment
in development economics, economic history, growth disasters, growth miracles, transport economics, urban economics Tags: India
A great take on the passport issue
06 Aug 2025 Leave a comment
in liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - New Zealand
It has been unbelievable that so many people have gone insane over the entirely sensible and trivial change to NZ passports where the language used by 99% of New Zealanders appears first and the language used by 4% appears second. Both languages are still on the NZ passport. All that has changed is the order. […]
A great take on the passport issue
Why the tariffs are bad
05 Aug 2025 1 Comment
in applied price theory, international economics, politics - USA Tags: tarrifs
I am delighted to see this excellent analysis in the NYT: Mr. Tedeschi said that future leaders in Washington, whether Republican or Democrat, may be hesitant to roll back the tariffs if that would mean a further addition to the federal debt load, which is already raising alarms on Wall Street. And replacing the tariff […]
Why the tariffs are bad
A Critical Review of Impacts of Greenhouse Gas Emissions on the U.S. Climate
05 Aug 2025 Leave a comment
in applied welfare economics, economics of climate change, energy economics, environmental economics, environmentalism, global warming, politics - USA
By Paul Homewood Climate sceptics have long called for a genuinely independent review of climate science – a Blue v Red Team, as it were. Thanks to the US Energy Secretary, here it is: https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/2025-07/DOE_Critical_Review_of_Impacts_of_GHG_Emissions_on_the_US_Climate_July_2025.pdf The authors make it clear they only undertook the task on the guarantee there would be no editorial oversight […]
A Critical Review of Impacts of Greenhouse Gas Emissions on the U.S. Climate
A Small But Important Victory for Taxpayers
05 Aug 2025 1 Comment
in economics of bureaucracy, fiscal policy, politics - USA, Public Choice
Regular readers know I’m not a Trumpie. Some of his policies are terrible (protectionism), while others are irresponsible (punting on entitlements) or misguided (new tax loopholes). But I have to give credit where credit is due. Unlike every other Republican president over the past six decades – including the great Ronald Reagan – Donald Trump […]
A Small But Important Victory for Taxpayers
Why the accommodation supplement does little to help low-income tenants
04 Aug 2025 1 Comment
in applied price theory, income redistribution, labour economics, Public Choice, welfare reform
In an article in The Conversation earlier this year, Edward Yiu and William Cheung (both University of Auckland) discuss New Zealand’s accommodation supplement for low-income renters:New Zealand’s unaffordable housing market has left many low and middle-income families reliant on the accommodation supplement to cover rent and mortgage payments.But our new research has found the scheme,…
Why the accommodation supplement does little to help low-income tenants
Trump Admin Moves To Curb ‘Environmentally Damaging’ Green Energy Projects
04 Aug 2025 1 Comment
in economics of climate change, economics of regulation, energy economics, environmental economics, environmentalism, global warming, politics - USA Tags: solar power, wind power
The Department of the Interior (DOI) moved to deal another blow to the green energy industry Friday, announcing that it will consider energy projects’ capacity density and the environmental impacts before permitting them, singling out wind and solar.
Trump Admin Moves To Curb ‘Environmentally Damaging’ Green Energy Projects
Utopia, you are standing in it! 
Recent Comments