Topic: Government

Don’t Let the FDA Tell You What’s Healthy

– October 25, 2022

“Determining what is healthy or unhealthy is complex. Complex problems rarely have entirely right or wrong answers. The FDA is trying (again) to provide this, but there is a slim chance it will succeed.” ~ Raymond J. March

Free Markets, Government, Regulation

Proposition 12, the Constitution, and Good Government

– October 25, 2022

“Proposition 12 not only oversteps California’s regulatory powers under the U.S. Constitution, it also violates the political principle that those who will be forced to abide by laws should have a voice in them.” ~ Gary M. Galles

Government, Regulation, Technology

Consumer Privacy Laws Aren’t About the Public

– October 24, 2022

“Privacy laws do nothing to prevent the government from accessing information collected in the private sphere. Instead, businesses are burdened with red tape while government agents enjoy easy access to the databases they want to tap.” ~ April Liu & Leslie Corbly

Economic Education, Free Markets, Government

Government Is Largely Guesswork

– October 24, 2022

“Unlike actions taken in markets, even the best government actions carried out in the most appropriate circumstances are guided by little more than guesswork.” ~ Donald J. Boudreaux

Free Markets, Government, Regulation

Progressive Policies Destroy Capitalism’s Prosperity

– October 23, 2022

“To pull America away from the grips of a recession and the shackles of inflation, the government must get out of the way of the productive private sector.” ~ Vance Ginn

Free Markets, Government, Socialism

Industrial Policy on Parade

– October 23, 2022

“The fact that past industrial policy attempts were abandoned due to grotesque failure to achieve their goals seems to make no difference to those who are intent on reviving this practice.” ~ Veronique de Rugy

Free Markets, Government, Regulation

Can Granny Flats Make California Affordable?

– October 21, 2022

“The century-old fetishization of single-family homes on orderly lots had badly distorted the housing supply, and Californians both want housing and want to build housing. All the government had to do was get out of the way.” ~ Laura Williams

Free Markets, Government, Technology

PayPal and the Purpose of a Corporation

– October 21, 2022

“Whether the damage to PayPal will be fleeting or chronic is yet to be seen. But perhaps this incident will be a cautionary tale for corporate managers. Their first job must be to mind the store.” ~ Jarret Decker

Authoritarianism, Government, International, Technology

“GramXi,” China, and the Long March through Multilateral Institutions

– October 20, 2022

“The ITU proceedings matter for liberty and privacy against the rise of Chinese tyranny and its long march through multilateral institutions. GramXi, indeed.” ~ Dominique M. Lazanski and Nikolai G. Wenzel

Authoritarianism, Crisis, Government

Concocting Crises

– October 19, 2022

“The most dire crisis of all may very well be the ability of those seeking to usurp power to create the appearance of crisis from mere bat viruses, lucky strikes, and statistical shadows.” ~ Robert E. Wright

Free Trade, Government, International, Regulation

On Some of the More Difficult Questions About Trade Policy, Continued.

– October 19, 2022

“Reality is messy. It seldom presents to us ‘solutions.’ Much more often we are confronted only with trade-offs. Principled and informed defenders of a policy of free trade accept this fact. I wish that more defenders of protectionism did likewise.” ~ Donald J. Boudreaux

Authoritarianism, Free Markets, Government

Cities Sidestep Property Rights With This One Trick

– October 19, 2022

“If the goal is to fix a city’s image, attacking safe, ordinary small businesses is not the way to achieve it. Regardless of the excuses, amortization is ugly. U-Hauls look beautiful in comparison.” ~ Daryl James & Bob Belden