What’s the Matter With Chicago?
When was my beloved City of Chicago – a refuge for such liberty lovers as Milton Friedman, Richard Epstein, and F.A. Hayek – overtaken by the Lifestyle Gestapo? First it was the smoking ban. Then, the ban on foie-gras. Now, the city’s most powerful alderman has proposed that the city ban the sale of foods ... What’s the Matter With Chicago?
(grocery) STORE WARS
I’ve posted a couple of times about Wal-Mart’s foray into the organic food sector (see here and here). I’m wondering on which side this puts Wal-Mart in Store Wars. Is the chain now on the side of Cuke Skywalker, Tofu D2, and the exiled Princess Lettuce? Or is it still aligned with the evil Darth ... (grocery) STORE WARS
An Insider Trading Policy a Monkey Would Love
As Josh noted, Henry Manne recently published a WSJ op-ed arguing for liberalization of insider trading on efficiency grounds — chiefly, because such trading “aids capital allocation decisions and informs business executives through market-price feedback of the best predictions about the value of new plans.” (For a more complete statement of Henry’s argument, see here.) ... An Insider Trading Policy a Monkey Would Love
The NYT on SCOTUS’s Wetlands Decision
Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a fractured decision in consolidated appeals raising the issue of which wetlands come within the ambit of the federal Clean Water Act (“CWA�). The wetlands at issue were next to drainage ditches that, when full of water, would eventually flow into navigable waters. The record did not establish whether ... The NYT on SCOTUS’s Wetlands Decision
Do Positive Externalities Always Justify Government Subsidies? Some Insights From the Austrians and Public Choice
The folks over at Lawyers, Gun$, and Money are chiding me for ignoring (or, as they say, never having heard of) positive externalities. A couple of days ago, I criticized a NYT editorial calling for the federal government to “throw its weight behind” private efforts to develop alternative fuels. My main point was that the ... Do Positive Externalities Always Justify Government Subsidies? Some Insights From the Austrians and Public Choice
Alternative Fuels: Let Markets, Not Government, Decide.
It’s a strange day when the New York Times advocates corporate tax breaks. It’s an even stranger day when I dissent from that recommendation. Well, today must be a strange day indeed, for they did, and I must. The upshot of today’s editorial, Let Them Go Green, is that the federal government should “throw its ... Alternative Fuels: Let Markets, Not Government, Decide.
More on Wal-Mart and Organics
An article from yesterday’s W$J sheds some light on the organic community’s anger over Wal-Mart’s decision to begin selling organic products. A few weeks ago, I accused Wal-Mart’s critics of wanting to keep price-sensitive consumers out of the organic “club.� The article in yesterday’s Journal suggests that that’s part of the story, but that the ... More on Wal-Mart and Organics
Some Thoughts on Tradeable Gasoline Rights
Marty Feldstein has an interesting idea about how to reduce America’s oil consumption, but I’m not quite ready to sign on. In an op-ed in yesterday’s WSJ, Feldstein proposed a “cap and trade� system for gasoline. Under the proposed system, the government would set a limit on the amount of gasoline Americans could purchase annually ... Some Thoughts on Tradeable Gasoline Rights
NYT on Preserving the Purity of the Organic Club
The New York Times is worried about Wal-Mart’s plan to sell organic food. One would think that fans of organic would be happy about this development. It means that organic products will be available more cheaply at Wal-Mart, which is planning to sell organic products for just 10% more than conventionally grown food, and it’s ... NYT on Preserving the Purity of the Organic Club
The Froth Is Back
Today’s WSJ reports that professional stock analysts employed by brokerage firms are up to their old sunny ways. These “sell-side� analysts came under fire in 2002 for rendering falsely optimistic trading recommendations. Congressional hearings revealed that during the late 1990s, analysts’ “buy� recommendations outnumbered “sell� recommendations by nearly 100 to one. Well, according to today’s ... The Froth Is Back
Want to Boost Domestic Oil Production? Give ANWR to the Greens.
There have been some pretty stupid ideas floating around about how to deal with this purported gasoline crisis we’re experiencing. (See, e.g., here.) Here’s one that might sound crazy at first, but is, I submit, crazy like a fox. I propose that the government split the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve and give the pieces primarily ... Want to Boost Domestic Oil Production? Give ANWR to the Greens.
More on the SEC’s Antiquated Disclosure Rules for Oil Reserves
Back in February, I criticized the SEC’s rules regarding how energy companies must disclose their oil reserves in securities filings. My main point was that the conservative way the SEC measures reserves is quite different from the measurement approach the oil companies themselves take when deciding how to invest billions of their own dollars. If ... More on the SEC’s Antiquated Disclosure Rules for Oil Reserves
