The most embarrassing thing Joe Stiglitz ever wrote?
In case you haven’t already, I recommend taking a gander at today’s New York Time Book Review. In it, there is a review of Naomi Klein’s new book, The Shock Doctrine, by Nobel-winning economist, Joe Stiglitz. It’s an abomination (I’m sure the book is an abomination, too, but I’m referring to the book review). If ... The most embarrassing thing Joe Stiglitz ever wrote?
I am so smart, s-m-r-t. . . I mean, s-m-a-r-t.
I’m not one to gloat. Ok, yes i am. As Thom indicated, the court reached what I believe is the right result in the Whole Foods case yesterday. I’ve been beating this drum since the merger challenge was announced (I won’t bother linking, yet again, to the series of posts. Search for “Whole Foods” up ... I am so smart, s-m-r-t. . . I mean, s-m-a-r-t.
Read Marc Hodak
His short post is here. The theme is, in essence, Bastiat’s “What is Seen and What is Not Seen.” Government (and, oh, I don’t know . . . antitrust regulators in particular) thrive on the unseen–as Marc puts it, on the unfortunate reality that “invisible opportunity costs stay[] that way.” As I argued at some ... Read Marc Hodak
The EC versus Intel: The SO is issued
To no one’s great surprise (other than that it took so long), the European Commission issued a Statement of Objections against Intel today. More information as it becomes available. For those looking for a little insight into the case, you might be intrested in The FTC’s 1998 Complaint against Intel and the resulting Consent Decree (the entire case ... The EC versus Intel: The SO is issued
Newsflash! AAI supports merger review!
In shocking news, the American Antitrust Institute has come out with a white paper suggesting that the FTC’s challenge of the Whole Foods/Wild Oats merger is warranted (HT: Hanno): The FTC cites to numerous factors and questions that make a highly compelling case for looking closely at whether a Whole Foods/Wild Oats combination will tend substantially to ... Newsflash! AAI supports merger review!
Whole Foods: Where's the [premium, natural and organic] beef?
John Mackey posts a remarkable public response to the FTC, including the complete text and extended exegesis of one of the inflammatory hot docs that prompted the FTC’s action. But most amazing of all is this comment: The claims that the FTC makes in the above two paragraphs [from the FTC press release] are simply ... Whole Foods: Where's the [premium, natural and organic] beef?
FTC's Whole Foods complaint: still bulls**t
As Manfred reports over at the Antitrust Review, the judge has unsealed the FTC’s complaint against Whole Foods. This unredacted version reveals an unhealthy reliance on hot docs by the FTC’s staff. I won’t belabor the point. But when you’re looking at marketing materials and reports to the board to identify anticompetitive intent (hmmm. I ... FTC's Whole Foods complaint: still bulls**t
Premium natural and organic bulls**t
It appears that the FTC is moving to stop the proposed Whole Foods/Wild Oats merger. Says the FTC: If Whole Foods is allowed to devour Wild Oats, it will mean higher prices, reduced quality, and fewer choices for consumers [in the premium natural and organic supermarkets market]. That is a deal consumers should not be ... Premium natural and organic bulls**t
The only thing good about the movie, The Corporation
Frankly, I thought the movie, The Corporation, was unabashedly abysmal. It was a childish caricature, exhibiting no understanding by the filmmakers (or most of the interviewees) of the law, economics, or nature of corporations—to say nothing of capitalism. The movie is unsophisticated, anti-capitalist tripe. See Seth Weinberger’s review of the movie from the journal Political Communication ... The only thing good about the movie, The Corporation
Reflections on the GMU/Microsoft Conference
As you may know, this past Friday we (Geoff and Josh) organized the inaugural GMU/Microsoft Conference on the Law and Economics of Innovation. Overall, we were extremely pleased with our first entry in this conference series, The Regulation of Innovation and Economic Growth. We had about 130 register for the conference, including many high level ... Reflections on the GMU/Microsoft Conference
Blog roll updates
I just updated our blog roll. It now contains a link to the always-excellent Organizations & Markets Blog (Peter Klein and Nicolai Foss), mentioned/linked to by several of us before. Also, Marc Hodak (of frequent and excellent commenting fame) seems to have a blog, Hodak Value, to which we’ve added a link. I look forward to reading more ... Blog roll updates
George Mason/Microsoft Conference on the Law & Economics of Innovation
As Danny Sokol already pointed out, On May 4 at George Mason Law School, Josh Wright and I will be putting on a conference. This is the inaugural conference in an expected annual series of conferences co-sponsored by George Mason Law School and Microsoft on the law and economics of innovation. Our first conference is ... George Mason/Microsoft Conference on the Law & Economics of Innovation
