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.
We Can’t Breathe!
“The lucky thing is that no planning is needed for recovery, just removal of the policies restricting the free flow of funds to those willing to take calculated risks.” ~ Robert E. Wright
Andrew Jackson: Man of the People
“Jackson’s task, as his supporters saw it, was to be ‘a curative to the corrupt politics cankering Washington.’ He was sent there to drain the swamp.” ~ John Bicknell
Consumer Sentiment Improved in Early August but Remains Very Low
“Consumer sentiment ticked up in early August but hovers near record lows. Inflation expectations eased but remain a driver of weak consumer attitudes. The outlook is highly uncertain.” ~ Robert Hughes
Bug Off and Let People Enjoy Their Food
“The problem isn’t us having a ‘yuck factor’ to dignified mealworms and astounding fly larvae. The problem is them declaring such things ‘the future of food’ and telling us that our disgust is a threat to the world.” ~ Jon Sanders
Should the Federal Reserve Set its Own Goals?
“A target that is not determined solely by the Federal Reserve is less subject to changes solely due to deliberations at the Federal Reserve. It will enhance monetary policy’s effectiveness.” ~ Gerald P. Dwyer
The DIE Revolution Will Transform Tenure
“If universities start removing outspoken faculty members who are adherent to the traditional academic ethic, there will simply be no recourse within the new system.” ~ Alexander Riley
Weekly Initial Claims Increase for the Fifth Time in the Last Six Weeks
“Weekly initial claims rose again, continuing the recent upward trend. Sustained elevated rates of price increases, low consumer confidence, and aggressive Fed tightening are major risks for the economic outlook.” ~ Robert Hughes
Accounting for Inflation
“The great irony is that inflation would have been transitory if only the Fed had stabilized nominal spending. Prices would have risen above trend to reflect below-trend production and then returned to trend as production recovered.” ~ William J. Luther & Morgan Timmann
Save Your Flip Flops for the Beach
“Voters should vote their convictions and consciences as the Framers intended, and policymakers and pundits should stop flip-flopping like fish or flimsy footwear. Either way, it’s a bad look that hurts democratic discourse.” ~ Robert E. Wright
Energy Hypocrisy as Rich Countries Denying the Poor the Power to Develop
“This promised nirvana is a sham consisting of wishful thinking and green marketing. The world’s rich would never accept off-grid, renewable energy themselves — nor should the world’s poor.” ~ Bjorn Lomborg
AIER’s Everyday Price Index Falls 0.6 Percent in July
“AIER’s Everyday Price Index fell 0.6 in July, the first drop since November 2020. An intensifying Fed tightening cycle, consumer pessimism, and fallout from the Russian invasion of Ukraine remain threats to the economic outlook.” ~ Robert Hughes
Making Sense of the Recession
“Unemployment, for good reason, lags the onset of recessions. And assuming that a widespread burst in employment categorically signifies optimism or portends a quick resumption of economic growth is simply unwarranted.” ~ Peter C. Earle
Reich Strikes Out
“According to Reich, higher prices are due to the pandemic, which suppressed demand and created global supply chain problems, together with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, China’s overzealous lockdown policies, and of course, capitalist greed.” ~ Robert F. Mulligan
You’re Not Poor Because You Don’t Know David Brooks, You’re Poor Because You Don’t Know David Brooks
“Ultimately what Chetty has discovered, and that Brooks has cheered, is very bullish. The problem is that the discovery is not what either thinks it is. The American dream certainly lives, but only because individuals freely make decisions that correlate with the Dream.” ~ John Tamny
The Government Shouldn’t Decide Who May Practice Law
“Legal licensure wouldn’t be a matter of concern if it were not backed up with the power to exclude and punish anyone who dares to compete with the guild.” ~ George Leef
Gulliver’s Travels in Washington, D.C.
“Perhaps, like the King on the Island of Laputa, our elite need a reminder of the danger of wielding such power. Unlike Swift’s protagonist, we are not gullible.” ~ Caroline Breashears
How Airline Regulations Hurt Passengers
“The DOT might think they’re helping, but they’re really not. Airline passengers are far better off when they, not bureaucrats, decide how airlines are run.” ~ Patrick Carroll
Reflections Sparked by A New Jersey Turnpike Rest Area
“I’m confident that everyone at the New Jersey Turnpike rest area, if pressed to think seriously about this feature of the liberal market order as he or she surveyed fellow rest-area visitors, would heartily applaud.” ~ Donald J. Boudreaux
