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Showing results for:  “premium natural and organic”

The New Paternalism at Cato Unbound

The excellent lead essay is from Glen Whitman, with responses planned from Richard Thaler, Jonathan Klick and Shane Frederick.  It should be a very interesting exchange.  Here is, in my view, one of Whitman’s best paragraphs: Nevertheless, Sunstein and Thaler (in Nudge) respond to the slippery-slope argument by saying we should “make progress on those ... The New Paternalism at Cato Unbound

The Proposed Merger Guidelines: How Much of a Shift?

The proposed Horizontal Merger Guidelines (HMGs) have been treated by some as a major shift in enforcement approach away from a tight structure that begins with market definition to a more flexible and open-ended competitive effects approach.  Some of the specific concerns that have been raised are that the proposed HMGs dramatically change enforcement policy ... The Proposed Merger Guidelines: How Much of a Shift?

Price Discrimination in Education

Tom Smith offers an entertaining and insightful perspective on the economics of higher education: Without passing moral judgment in any way, I will just observe it is astonishing that higher education in this country has managed to get established a system where consumers have to disclose in detail how much money they have before they ... Price Discrimination in Education

Capitalism on film

Although I wasn’t doing any blogging the last couple of weeks, one of my theories was out there frolicking on its own. Now that I’m back, it’s time to do a little cleaning up. I was chagrined by the attention I received from Marc Abrahams, identified as “editor of the bimonthly Annals of Improbable Research ... Capitalism on film

Broad preemption and the federal takeover of state law

Last fall Guhan Subramanian, Steve Herscovici and Brian Barbetta (“SHB”) posted a paper claiming that Delaware’s antitakeover statute (Delaware GCL Section 203) was preempted by the Williams Act because it did not leave hostile bidders the “meaningful opportunity for success” required by three 1988 federal district courts which had upheld the Delaware law back in ... Broad preemption and the federal takeover of state law

More on Elizabeth Warren on Theory and Interpreting Data

With all the talk about the CFPB, Elizabeth Warren has been in the news lately.  The blogs too.  Most of the discussion has been about whether or not Timothy Geithner is a friend or foe to the Democrats’ preferred option of getting Warren nominated as the first chief of the CFPB.  Today, Megan McArdle started ... More on Elizabeth Warren on Theory and Interpreting Data

Let's Have New Section 2 Hearings!

Commissioner Rosch has offered a defense of the withdraw of the Section 2 Report.  This is an important step and the Commissioner, who readers know I’ve criticized from time to time here, should be credited for laying out his specific objections to the Report.  The objections are, in short, that the Report: Was “too ambitious” ... Let's Have New Section 2 Hearings!

Section 2 Symposium: David Evans–An Economist’s View

The treatment of unilateral conduct remains an intellectual and policy mess as we finish out the first decade of the 21st century. There were signs of hope a few years ago. The European Commission embarked on an effort to adopt an effects-based approach to unilateral conduct and to move away from the analytically-empty, object-based approach ... Section 2 Symposium: David Evans–An Economist’s View

A new argument against federal proxy access

Dodd-Frank included new federal rules regarding proxy access, which have significant problems. Now a new paper by Becker, Bergstresser and Subramanian provides an additional argument against these rules, Does Shareholder Proxy Access Improve Firm Value? Evidence from the Business Roundtable Challenge.  Here’s the abstract: We measure the value of shareholder proxy access by using a ... A new argument against federal proxy access

FCC Bans Exclusive Contracts In Apartment Buildings

From the NY Times: Federal regulators on Wednesday approved a rule that would ban exclusive agreements that cable television operators have with apartment buildings, opening up competition for other video providers that could eventually lead to lower prices. The Federal Communications Commission unanimously approved the change, which Chairman Kevin Martin said would help lower cable ... FCC Bans Exclusive Contracts In Apartment Buildings

I look pretty young but I'm just backdated, yeah

The WSJ this weekend has a long piece on the issue of stock option backdating, “The Perfect Payday.” Here’s the tagline: Some CEOs reap millions by landing stock options when they are most valuable. Luck–or something else? It’s an interesting article, much of which is devoted to debunking the assertion that backdating of options grants ... I look pretty young but I'm just backdated, yeah

Economic Illiteracy of the Week?

Via Ted Frank at Point of Law, the House has overwhelmingly passed a price gouging bill that will not help consumers, but on the bright side, is likely to provide a fresh example for microeconomics instructors teaching the consequences of price controls. The award for economic illiteracy of the week goes to the whole House, ... Economic Illiteracy of the Week?