Daily economy news from the American Institute for Economic Research: data, stories, research, and articles touching on economics, politics, culture, education, policy, opinion, technology, markets, healthcare, regulation, trends, and much more.

AIER’s Editorial Policy.

It’s Time to Discard Piketty’s Inequality Statistics

“As the study and measurement of inequality progresses, Piketty’s (and his team’s) main estimates have become obsolete and might be properly consigned to the field of the history of economic thought.” ~Phil Magness & Vincent Geloso

The Red Pill for Pill Ad Headaches

“Suppose all Americans and Kiwis look to their own self-interest by avoiding advertised drugs whenever possible. In that case, drug manufacturers would have an incentive to stop DTCA of their own accord.” ~Robert E. Wright

The Miracles of Human Cooperation Are Hidden in Plain Sight

“Humans cooperate and communicate in miraculous ways through the mechanism of the price system. If you believe someone must be in charge of coordinating human action, you will never notice the marvels all around you.” ~Barry Brownstein

Revisiting the Argument that Government is Too Small

“A balanced rebuttal to false and misleading claims will tend to be ineffective at reaching voters, which in turn makes deceptive political advertising more successful, over-expanding government.” ~Gary M. Galles

Politicians’ Job Training and College Sales Pitch is Snake Oil

“Are job training programs actually providing useful training to the people affected by foreign trade? Don’t ask lawmakers. They’d prefer that people give them credit for the intent and ignore questions about outcomes.” ~James M. Hohman

Johan Norberg’s The Capitalist Manifesto: A Review

“What matters for the capitalist story to flourish is that its effect on the world continues to be positive, not whether market actors believe it while embodying its principles.” ~Joakim Book

Timiraos on Supply-Side Disinflation

“Slowing down total spending growth (current-dollar GDP) by hiking interest rates and shrinking the balance sheet clearly mattered. Supply-side improvements do too, but they’re likely playing the role of the sidekick rather than the hero.” ~Alexander W. Salter

Thankful for the Lessons of Failures

“Plymouth was a centrally planned community. Everything was controlled, regulated, and rationed by one central government authority. And like all central planning efforts, the results were scarcity, hunger, and desperation.” ~Thomas Krannawitter

Black Friday 2023 Will Test Consumer Confidence

“Although Black Friday is a day of discounts, rebates, and other sales promotions, examining the price changes in the most-marketed merchandise categories may provide some insights as to what consumers face this year.” ~Peter C. Earle

How to Rationally Consume News

“Most information is noise, and the human brain isn’t equipped for the overload that the modern world throws at us. Don’t clutter your brain with unnecessary stuff.” ~Joakim Book

TikTok: Five Cuts

“Americans already have a license to engage in free speech, in the form of the First Amendment. And if you are thinking that the United States has a long history of anonymous, public speech, you’re right.” ~James Harrigan

How Can We Stop Serving Students So Poorly?

“Efforts to improve things with charter schools have shown some great results, and vouchers are attractive as a means to make educators more responsible to parents than to administrators. But we are still in the early stages of a very long struggle.” ~Gary M. Galles

It’s Time to Discard Piketty’s Inequality Statistics

“As the study and measurement of inequality progresses, Piketty’s (and his team’s) main estimates have become obsolete and might be properly consigned to the field of the history of economic thought.” ~Phil Magness & Vincent Geloso

The Red Pill for Pill Ad Headaches

“Suppose all Americans and Kiwis look to their own self-interest by avoiding advertised drugs whenever possible. In that case, drug manufacturers would have an incentive to stop DTCA of their own accord.” ~Robert E. Wright

The Miracles of Human Cooperation Are Hidden in Plain Sight

“Humans cooperate and communicate in miraculous ways through the mechanism of the price system. If you believe someone must be in charge of coordinating human action, you will never notice the marvels all around you.” ~Barry Brownstein

Revisiting the Argument that Government is Too Small

“A balanced rebuttal to false and misleading claims will tend to be ineffective at reaching voters, which in turn makes deceptive political advertising more successful, over-expanding government.” ~Gary M. Galles

Politicians’ Job Training and College Sales Pitch is Snake Oil

“Are job training programs actually providing useful training to the people affected by foreign trade? Don’t ask lawmakers. They’d prefer that people give them credit for the intent and ignore questions about outcomes.” ~James M. Hohman

Johan Norberg’s The Capitalist Manifesto: A Review

“What matters for the capitalist story to flourish is that its effect on the world continues to be positive, not whether market actors believe it while embodying its principles.” ~Joakim Book

Timiraos on Supply-Side Disinflation

“Slowing down total spending growth (current-dollar GDP) by hiking interest rates and shrinking the balance sheet clearly mattered. Supply-side improvements do too, but they’re likely playing the role of the sidekick rather than the hero.” ~Alexander W. Salter

Thankful for the Lessons of Failures

“Plymouth was a centrally planned community. Everything was controlled, regulated, and rationed by one central government authority. And like all central planning efforts, the results were scarcity, hunger, and desperation.” ~Thomas Krannawitter

Black Friday 2023 Will Test Consumer Confidence

“Although Black Friday is a day of discounts, rebates, and other sales promotions, examining the price changes in the most-marketed merchandise categories may provide some insights as to what consumers face this year.” ~Peter C. Earle

How to Rationally Consume News

“Most information is noise, and the human brain isn’t equipped for the overload that the modern world throws at us. Don’t clutter your brain with unnecessary stuff.” ~Joakim Book

TikTok: Five Cuts

“Americans already have a license to engage in free speech, in the form of the First Amendment. And if you are thinking that the United States has a long history of anonymous, public speech, you’re right.” ~James Harrigan

How Can We Stop Serving Students So Poorly?

“Efforts to improve things with charter schools have shown some great results, and vouchers are attractive as a means to make educators more responsible to parents than to administrators. But we are still in the early stages of a very long struggle.” ~Gary M. Galles