The Constitution explicitly states that neither the Congress nor any state may pass an “ex post facto Law,” which imposes criminal liability for past actions that weren’t restricted at the time. The Maryland, New York, and Vermont acts all propose to tax companies retroactively for legally producing fossil fuels.
Trump Administration Targets State Climate Laws
Trump Administration Targets State Climate Laws
17 May 2025 Leave a comment
in economics of climate change, energy economics, environmental economics, environmentalism, global warming, law and economics, politics - USA, property rights, Public Choice, rentseeking Tags: climate alarmism, nuisance suits
Beyond Left and Right: The Emerging Divide Between the Educated and Uneducated
17 May 2025 Leave a comment
in politics
The traditional political spectrum—spanning from left to right—has for over a century structured political conflict in liberal democracies. Yet in recent decades, especially in the wake of globalisation, digital disruption, and cultural upheaval, this axis has begun to fragment. A growing body of evidence suggests that future political struggles are less likely to be determined […]
Beyond Left and Right: The Emerging Divide Between the Educated and Uneducated
Expert Assessment Warns Expansion Of Wind And Solar Energy Jeopardizing French Power Grid Stability
17 May 2025 Leave a comment
in economics of climate change, energy economics, environmental economics, environmentalism, global warming Tags: France, solar power, wind power
The French are finding out that combining nuclear power with unstable wind and sun is not a good idea and is a risk to the power grid.
Expert Assessment Warns Expansion Of Wind And Solar Energy Jeopardizing French Power Grid Stability
Spain recently had to learn a similar lesson in a most painful manner.
More Gaza narrative promotion from the BBC’s Fergal Keane
16 May 2025 1 Comment
in defence economics, International law, law and economics, laws of war, war and peace Tags: Gaza Strip, Israel, Middle-East politics, regressive left, war against terror
For the past nineteen months the BBC’s Fergal Keane has been a man on a mission. On his periodic trips to Israel, Keane and his team have produced multiple reports presenting a monochrome and highly limited view of the conflict from the perspective of Palestinians, with most playing heavily on the emotions of readers or […]
More Gaza narrative promotion from the BBC’s Fergal Keane
Stuff’s hypocrisy laid bare
16 May 2025 Leave a comment
in discrimination, gender, politics - New Zealand Tags: media bias, sex discrimination
They have published numerous articles decrying sexist abuse of MPs, and then they turn around and publish a column by one of their own journalists calling female Ministers a bunch of cu**s. The greatest sign of their hypocrisy is from this note by then then Dominion Post editor: So the Editor of the DP explicitly…
Stuff’s hypocrisy laid bare
Is this a gold mine? Iwi might need consulting (for a fee) before your development can be given RMA consents
16 May 2025 Leave a comment
in economics of regulation, energy economics, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, resource economics, urban economics
Bob Edlin writes – West Coast Regional Councillor Allan Birchfield has whipped up a fuss in his neck of the woods by challenging the Ngāti Waewae representative Francois Tumahai over the iwi’s role in resource consenting. The iwi – it seems – must agree to gold-mining consents in gold-mining country, presumably after appropriate consultation or engagement […]
Is this a gold mine? Iwi might need consulting (for a fee) before your development can be given RMA consents
Calculating America’s Lead over Europe
16 May 2025 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economic growth, economic history, macroeconomics Tags: European Union
There’s an enormous amount of data showing that people in the United States enjoy much higher livings standards than Europeans. That’s not too surprising since most European governments have adopted large-sized welfare states while Americans are (comparatively!) lucky in that we have a medium-sized welfare state. That’s all very straightforward and uncontroversial. What’s not completely […]
Calculating America’s Lead over Europe
“A Modest Request”: The Supreme Court Hears Challenge to National or Universal Injunctions
15 May 2025 Leave a comment
in law and economics, politics - USA Tags: 2024 presidential election
Today, the United States Supreme Court will hear three consolidated cases in Trump v. CASA on the growing use of national or universal injunctions. This is a matter submitted on the “shadow docket” and the underlying cases concern the controversy over “birthright citizenship.” However, the merits of those claims are not at issue. Instead, the […]
“A Modest Request”: The Supreme Court Hears Challenge to National or Universal Injunctions
The Merciful Maximization of the Market
15 May 2025 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economic history
An excerpt from Chapter 2 of *Unbeatable*
The Merciful Maximization of the Market
Sacramental Snitches: Church to Excommunicate any Priests Complying with Washington State Law
15 May 2025 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, economics of religion, law and economics, politics - USA
We previously discussed the legislation passed by Washington State democrats that requires priests to violate the sanctity of the confessional to report child abuse. I described the law as “blatantly unconstitutional” in eviscerating the right to the free exercise of religion. The state is moving to create an effective system of sacramental snitches and the […]
Sacramental Snitches: Church to Excommunicate any Priests Complying with Washington State Law
Britain Could Face Months-Long Blackouts Because of Net Zero
15 May 2025 Leave a comment
in economics of climate change, energy economics, environmental economics, environmentalism, global warming Tags: British politics, solar power, wind power
Britain’s rush to Net Zero could leave it vulnerable to months-long blackouts, as reliance on intermittent renewables strains the grid, escalating costs and jeopardising energy security. The Telegraph has more.
Britain Could Face Months-Long Blackouts Because of Net Zero
Should gdp include defense spending?
15 May 2025 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, defence economics, economic growth, economic history, macroeconomics
Maybe not, isn’t that a form of double counting? After all, defense spending is there to enable the production of other goods and services, it is not useful per se. Chandler S. Reilly and Vincent Geloso recalculate the history of U.S. economic growth using this new method: In fact, our corrections applied to the entire […]
Should gdp include defense spending?
Bill Maher: New Rules 2
14 May 2025 Leave a comment
in politics - USA, television, TV shows Tags: 2024 presidential election
Here’s the second of Bill Maher’s “New Rules” segments that I haven’t posted. The YouTube caption is “New Rule: Before they can take on Donald Trump, Democrats have to decide which wing of their own party is best to lead them out of the wilderness.” Well, the segment doesn’t even really tackle that question. It […]
Bill Maher: New Rules 2
Ministers of Finance
14 May 2025 Leave a comment
No, nothing so serious as fiscal policy. I saw this morning this chart in a tweet from a Canadian economics professor (prompted by the new ministerial appointments in Canada). I was digging around in the list of former New Zealand Ministers of Finance anyway, and thought it might be interesting to try a New Zealand […]
Ministers of Finance
Utopia, you are standing in it! 
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