Tag: regulations
How the government makes natural disasters so much worse
September 11, 2017 | Post
Many of the most expensive flood and storm disasters in US history have occurred in recent decades. The glib response is to blame the severity of these catastrophes on climate change, but are we looking in the wrong direction?
Do you have a license to mow that lawn? 5 ways occupational licensing laws hurt (almost) everyone
June 3, 2017 | Post
A city ordinance requires teenagers to have a business license before cutting grass for money.
Quietly creating freedom: Private communities and special economic zones
April 3, 2017 | Post
The astonishing growth in SEZs qualifies as a revolution of sorts, but not the usual, political kind.
How regulations block economic progress
March 27, 2017 | Post
To discover the Next Big Thing, you need to think outside the box.
Patents are out of control, and they’re hurting innovation
March 14, 2017 | Post
The government issues thousands of new patents every week — each one a new regulation — with little to no oversight or review.
Deregulation gets the beer flowing.
February 5, 2017 | Post
Breweries will open as long as it is profitable. When taxes and regulations raise the costs of opening a brewery, we will see fewer of them.
So did Obamanomics work or not?
January 29, 2017 | Post
How to evaluate the economic record of Barack Obama? To even begin answering, it’s necessary to go beyond just counting the number of jobs created during his presidency (10 million) or calculating the average growth rate (1.5%) or even looking at something more wonky like the labor force participation rate.
Trump's order on sanctuary cities is dangerous and unconstitutional
January 26, 2017 | Post
Trump’s executive order is exactly the kind of high-handed coercion of states that outraged conservatives under Obama.
5 weird ways Prohibition still exists today
January 25, 2017 | Post
Prohibition was repealed more than 80 years ago, but we’re still feeling its policy hangover.
4 New Year's resolutions for the Trump administration
January 3, 2017 | Post
Trump doesn’t seem like the type for self-improvement, but here are four unsolicited recommendations anyway.
Over-Criminalization Nation — 5 Blood-Boiling Cases of Government Overreach
December 28, 2016 | Post
Every year the number of regulations, dictates, rules, decrees, guidelines, statutes, laws, and bylaws in the United States grows by leaps and bounds.
The case of post-Soviet Georgia shows us that economic freedom and human dignity are inseparable
December 21, 2016 | Post
I was still a Soviet citizen when I first read some of the international documents on human, economic, and political rights.
Bureaucracy buries the human spirit with paperwork
December 18, 2016 | Post
The following words represent the generally acknowledged mindset of a bureaucrat: “Rules are rules, fella. I don’t make ‘em. I just enforce ‘em.”
A political economist explains the best way to shrink the government in 9 charts
December 6, 2016 | Post
Let’s say that you’re a policymaker interested in reducing the size of government. Strategically, is it easier to cut government regulation or roll back the welfare state (thereby reducing government spending)?
Animal-loving entrepreneur succeeds despite anti-cat regulators
December 4, 2016 | Post
The petty tyrants that occupy county zoning offices or health departments are exactly why we can’t have nice things.
Why don’t we allow markets to dictate parking policy?
November 10, 2016 | Post
A market for parking free of government manipulation would reduce inequality, improve the environment, and make cities more livable.
Solar energy can’t survive without massive subsidies
October 30, 2016 | Post
Solar power can only survive with an army of lobbyists dedicated to securing millions in taxpayer dollars.
Why Chairs Are Cheap and EpiPens Are Expensive
September 2, 2016 | Post
Imagine that the government creates the Furniture and Desk Association, an agency which declares that only IKEA is allowed to sell chairs.
Protectionism is Robbery
August 30, 2016 | Post
Protectionism is the belief that domestic producers have a higher claim to your money than you do.
Self-Driving Ubers on a Collision Course With Regulators
August 23, 2016 | Post
Outdated regulations prove to be a roadblock to ride-sharing innovation.
Hotels Don’t Need New York to Regulate Airbnb
August 19, 2016 | Post
The road to tyranny is paved with good intentions. Anti-entrepreneurship, innovation crushing good intentions.
Getting Rid of Inheritances Still Wouldn’t Solve America’s Inequality Problem
August 9, 2016 | Post
Should we allow the wealthy to pass on large inheritances to their children and grandchildren? After all, allowing one generation to transfer large sums of money to another seems to exacerbate the problem of inequality, allowing second and third generations to bask in wealth they really didn’t earn. If we, at the very least, taxed […]
A Rule Meant to Reduce Neurosurgeon's Fatigue Went Terribly Wrong
July 27, 2016 | Post
Because each physician works fewer hours, they have to hand off patients to other doctors, which can lead to mistakes even more serious than those caused by fatigue.
What If Seeing a Doctor Was as Easy as Ordering an Uber?
March 16, 2016 | Post
Wouldn’t it be great if seeing a doctor was as quick and as easy as calling an Uber? That’s the question that Mercatus Center Senior Research Fellow Adam Thierer asks in the new Learn Liberty video on Permissionless Innovation. This concept states that people should be allowed to innovate and make products that improve our […]