The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News
TRANSPORTATION
A documentary about the development of the electric car hits movie theaters.
CEI Expert Available to Comment: Director of Global Warming Policy Myron Ebell on why lack of consumer interest lead to the demise of electric vehicles.
“The California law requiring that automakers sell a certain percentage of zero emissions vehicles failed because consumers weren’t interested in them. General Motors made a good faith effort to comply with the California law. They invested and lost over a billion dollars in developing their state-of-the-art EV1 electric vehicle.”
INTERNET
Legislators endorse mandatory data-retention for ISPs.
CEI Expert Available to Comment: Vice President for Policy Wayne Crews and Policy Analyst Brooke Oberwetter on how private sector solutions protect online security better than government mandates.
“Government solutions tend to disincentivize honesty and cooperation among industry players in the long term, leading to even greater problems of imperfect information. Intervention can also interfere with prices, meaning a less efficient allocation of resources. In addition to economic inefficiency, regulations can define industry standards down and reduce innovations in the field of cybersecurity, leading to lower levels of security than we have now.”
HEALTH
Private organizations take on the spread of malaria on Mozambique.
CEI Expert Available to Comment: Director of Risk and Environmental Policy Angela Logomasini on how DDT can save lives.
“DDT is still the best available tool for controlling the spread of malaria-carrying mosquitoes. Public health authorities spray DDT on the interior walls of buildings, which deters mosquitoes from entering the homes. This approach is effective because mosquitoes feed largely at night when people are inside.”
RETAIL
Slate hosts a debate over the virtues of retail giant Wal-Mart.
CEI Expert Available to Comment: Assistant Editorial Director Peter Suderman on the wishful thinking of anti-Wal-Mart activists.
“The problem with the anti-Wal-Mart crowd is that it wants something for nothing, higher rates for the same value. It may sound like a nice idea, but in the long run, it hurts exactly the people that [anti-Wal-Mart activists] ostensibly want to help.”
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