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.
The Covid Crucible
“Constant repetition of the bizarre and obviously untrue mantra that policymakers are ‘following the science’ and not basing Covid policy on the 21st-century equivalent of spectral evidence suggests that Miller was on to something fundamental. So watch or read The Crucible until the crucible of Covid repression spurs a new literary treatment of the dangers unleashed by that strange brew of populism, private interest, and government power.” ~ Robert E. Wright
Your Right to Refuse a Health Passport
“Governor Cuomo has had too much control for too long; he has obviously enjoyed wielding it since Day 1. As I have said again and again, until we make clear that we will not abide by these infringements on our civil rights, our liberty, and our dignity, they will not stop. Unfortunately, New Yorkers have proven themselves all too willing to comply.” ~ Jenin Younes
The Right to Work and Occupational Licensing
“There is nothing more Un-American and Anti-Capitalist than a system that ordains some with the right to earn a living and bars others from that same essential right. Rather than cultivating an environment where everyone can safely contribute, occupational licenses have made the economy a pay-to-play scheme that only serves well-connected interests.” ~ Amelia Janaskie, Ethan Yang & Jack Nicastro
In Finance, Slow is Good
“What the central bank RTGS/LSM two-step teaches us is that we need a good balance between fast and slow. Sure, real-time settlement is a nice feature. But let’s also have delayed settlement. If brokerages have a choice to use some combination of two-day and real-time settlement, we may arrive at a socially optimal stock settlement rate.” ~ J.P. Koning
Yuval Noah Harari’s Terrifying Pandemic Future
“Let’s focus on the ethical obligation that now runs rampant in our broken societies: everyone’s health is everyone else’s business. Your wants, desires, habits, and routines are mine to police; after all, if we’re not careful, your body could be the source of the next global disease. That means I, or some national or global entity that I control, must be in charge of your life. It is a scary world into which Professor Harari wants us to happily and voluntarily walk.” ~ Joakim Book
Light-Vehicle Sales Decreased in February
“Light-vehicle sales fell in February, falling below the recent range. The decline was led by a sharp drop in domestic car sales.” – Robert Hughes
The Maoist Roots of Social Justice in Higher Education
“Those who actually want to make efforts to forward amiable goals like diversity, equity, and inclusion should distance themselves from radical far-left doctrines in favor of one that does not seek political domination while using minorities as a wedge. If that cannot be done, it would be understandable for demands for social justice to be thoroughly rejected by those who wish to preserve the integrity of higher education.” ~ Ethan Yang
Central Planners Send Vaccines to Places Seniors Don’t Live
“Federal officials monopolized the purchase and distribution of vaccines which were sent to state governments, which micromanaged distribution of vaccines to their counties. Vaccines were then rationed by political preferences (such as defining some jobs as more essential than others) and by random luck after spending hours searching for an appointment.” ~ Alan Reynolds
16 States Are Now Following The Science
“Governors who continue to impose lockdowns and mask mandates are fast becoming as popular as Red Sox fans in the Yankee Stadium bleachers, at least in half of the country. The internal polling is out, and the draconian restrictions are being abandoned in droves. History will not be kind to the remaining high-handed holdouts.” ~ Jordan Schachtel
Mastercard’s Crypto Ruse
“With more corporate powerhouses supporting cryptocurrencies by the month, it appears that crypto is here to stay. Whether those cryptos are the ones currently popular or this announcement by Mastercard acts to initiate a path dependent development process is presently unknown and unknowable. Other recent initiatives by the massive processing firm suggest a focus that may thwart, rather than promote, the expansion of genuine, public cryptocurrency use.” ~ Peter C. Earle
The Case for the Deregulated Texas Power Grid
“Markets learn from outlier events such as this one. Institutions and individuals will adapt in light of new perceptions of weather exigencies and risks. This is the major advantage of any deregulation market: it is adaptive. The same cannot be said for any system of regulated state control.” ~ Jack Nicastro
Lockdowns Could Reshape American Politics for a Generation, or Several
“Anti-lockdownism need not be partisan. The victims of these policies are all over the political map. They are united only in their general belief in human rights, constitutional restraints on government, and the need to keep society functioning in the midst of a health crisis. This opinion is not and should not be controversial. There is never a good excuse to turn on basic Enlightenment values in favor of feudal forms of political organization and coerced social management. Never.” ~ Jeffrey Tucker
Rename the Cuomo Bridge for Covid Victims
“I empathize with those desiring that the name of the 3.1 mile bridge should revert to Tappan Zee; other recommendations would undoubtedly include renaming the structure for a deceased serviceman or woman, the 9/11 attack victims, or a different New York State Governor. (DeWitt Clinton, who facilitated the building of the Erie Canal, often comes up.) But I disagree with all of those.” ~ Peter C. Earle
Texas Electricity Prices Are Lower Due to Deregulation
“Contrary to McGinty and Patterson, a close look at the evidence reveals that deregulation and competition have, in fact, reduced electricity prices in Texas. Prices in competitive markets have fallen, while those of noncompetitive utilities have increased. Competition has brought both residential and commercial prices down below the national averages.” ~ Thomas L. Hogan
The Wreckers of New York and their Bitter Rivalry
“Unfortunately, New Yorkers apparently retain faith in central planning of their lives despite the dismal failures at both the mayoral and gubernatorial level. The political profits of demagoguery will perennially trump the calculus of benevolence. The only ‘savior’ worth trusting is the revival of individual freedom and a vast decrease in regulatory restrictions and tax exactions.” ~ James Bovard
Post-Covid Policy Advice from Ludwig von Mises for Developing Countries
“Mises’ warnings about misguided government policies remain just as relevant if not more so today, as we see in our own time a new push for increased interventionism, expanded welfare statism, and renewed calls for socialist-style centralized planning. As Mises said, if we want, peace, freedom and prosperity, there is no alternative to the free market economy respectful of competitive entrepreneurship and consumer choice.” ~ Richard M. Ebeling
That The Profit Of One Man Is The Gain Of Another
“It is not exploitation; rather, profit is a reward you earn for helping strangers in ways that waste no resources and leave them available for other strangers. Are firms earning ‘exorbitant’ profit selling natural gas and Covid vaccines? I doubt it. If anything, people scrambling to get their hands on artificially-short supplies indicates that they aren’t making enough.” ~ Art Carden
There Are Libertarians In A Pandemic, And For Good Reason
“If nothing else, the Covid pandemic will create dissertation topics for generations of Ph.D. students across the humanities and social sciences. Someone looking to write the definitive history of the pandemic could get a head start by considering some of Cochrane’s commentary.” ~ Art Carden
