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Adam Smith on Lotteries

By: Ryan Young
11/10/2010

I didn’t know there were state-run lotteries in 1776, but apparently there were, because Adam Smith explains what a bad deal they are in The…

Consumer Freedom

Blog

Regulation of the Day 158: Preparing Taxes

By: Ryan Young
11/10/2010

The IRS wants to require all tax preparers to register with them, pass an exam, and take continuing education classes.

Regulatory Reform

Investors' Business Daily

Tax Preparers Shouldn’t Get IRS Favors

By: Caleb Brown, Ryan Young
11/09/2010

Taxes are big business. And not just for the federal government, which collects over $1 trillion per year in income tax revenue alone. Because the…

Business and Government

Blog

Regulation of the Day 157: Unlicensed Barbering

By: Ryan Young
11/08/2010

In Orange County, Florida, barbering without a license is illegal. The regulation is being enforced with armed raids.

Regulatory Reform

Blog

Regulation of the Day 156: Happy Meals

By: Ryan Young
11/04/2010

With an 8-3 vote, San Francisco's Board of Supervisors banned the greatest menace facing it or any other city: happy meals.

Consumer Freedom

Blog

CEI Podcast: November 4, 2010 — Election Dissection

By: Ryan Young
11/04/2010

Myron Ebell, the Director of CEI's Center for Energy and Environment, talks about the 2010 midterm election, what will happen in the lame-duck session, and…

Blog

An Optimistic Take on the Election

By: Ryan Young
11/03/2010

CEI President and Founder Fred Smith and I have an article in The Daily Caller expressing cautious optimism about yesterday’s election results. Our main points:…

Daily Caller

A Giant Awakens?

By: Fred L. Smith, Jr., Ryan Young
11/03/2010

Yesterday’s election could be the start of something grand — but not because Republicans won the House. Many of the Obama administration’s policies, including…

Business and Government

Blog

Why I Didn’t Vote This Year

By: Ryan Young
11/02/2010

Over at The Daily Caller, I tally up the arguments for and against voting. Think them through. Do what's right for you. And don't look…

Daily Caller

Why I Didn’t Vote

By: Ryan Young
11/02/2010

The last time I voted was in 2002. And once again, after careful thought, I decided to sit this one out. There are lots…

Business and Government

Blog

Halloween Roundup

By: Ryan Young
11/01/2010

Silly string forbidden in Hollywood on Halloween, man arrested for wearing a mask, plus more.

Consumer Freedom

Blog

Regulation of the Day 155: Miniskirts

By: Ryan Young
11/01/2010

Police officers would be tasked with paying close attention to women’s hemlines; no doubt many already do. Women who catch an officer’s eye could be…

Consumer Freedom

Blog

The Rise of Negative Campaigning?

By: Ryan Young
10/29/2010

Negative campaigning is at least as old as the campaign itself.

Blog

2010’s Record Election Spending Is Surprisingly Small

By: Ryan Young
10/28/2010

$4 billion is a lot of money. It comes to $12.90 per person in a nation of 310 million people.

Blog

The Nobel Case for Immigration

By: Ryan Young
10/26/2010

In today's American Spectator, my colleague Alex Nowrasteh and I make the case for expanding skilled immigration.

Labor and Employment

American Spectator

The Nobel Case for Immigration

By: Alex Nowrasteh, Ryan Young
10/26/2010

Only 1 in 20 people on earth live in America. But Americans won 4 of 11 Nobel prizes this year. Last year, it was…

Business and Government

Blog

Regulation of the Day 154: Potatoes in School Lunches

By: Ryan Young
10/25/2010

The children are not pleased. One child told the Associated Press, "That would be so not cool. I love tater tots."…

Consumer Freedom

Blog

New CEI Podcast — October 25, 2010: Regulating Every Room

By: Ryan Young
10/25/2010

CEI's Senior Fellow in Environmental Studies Ben Lieberman explains how new energy regulations affect every room in your house, from the basement to the bathroom…

Energy and Environment

Blog

New CEI Podcast — October 21, 2010: Relic of Prohibition

By: Ryan Young
10/21/2010

CEI Director of Insurance Studies Michelle Minton analyzes proposals to privatize Virginia's liquor stores.

Consumer Freedom

Blog

The East German Immigration Model

By: Ryan Young
10/19/2010

A U.S. Senate candidate in Alaska thinks that the U.S. should follow East Germany's example when it comes to immigration.

Trade and International

Blog

Regulation of the Day 153: Pentagon Cybersecurity

By: Ryan Young
10/15/2010

The military’s cybersecurity experts are governed by 193 documents. They are all conveniently listed in a chart. It is two feet long.

Regulatory Reform

Blog

CEI Podcast — October 14, 2010: Antitrust Follies and Regulatory Reform

By: Ryan Young
10/14/2010

CEI Vice President for Policy Wayne Crews talks about why antitrust actually hurts competition, and offers some ideas for regulatory reform.

Regulatory Reform

Blog

Why Trade and War Are Different

By: Ryan Young
10/14/2010

Over at the American Spectator's AmspecBlog, I highlight why real wars and trade wars are very, very different…

Trade and International

Blog

Foreign Money is Not the Problem

By: Ryan Young
10/13/2010

President Obama seems to be saying that people are smart enough to know whether or not a candidate is bamboozling them in an ad. But…

Blog

Regulation of the Day 152: Locking Your Car Door

By: Ryan Young
10/13/2010

The government of Bucks County, Pennsylvania plans to issue $25 fines to people who forget to lock their cars.

Consumer Freedom

Blog

First, Try Getting the Little Things Right

By: Ryan Young
10/08/2010

Conservatives and progressives share a defining characteristic: they both believe in the power of government. This belief is astounding, given the amount of contrary evidence.

Overlawyered

Bucks County, PA plans to ticket people who forget to lock their cars

By: Ryan Young
10/08/2010

Business and Government

Blog

Misplaced Ire

By: Ryan Young
10/07/2010

The commentariat is liable to sprain an ankle, jumping to conclusions like that.

Blog

CEI Podcast – October 7, 2010: Trade, Jobs, and Korea

By: Ryan Young
10/07/2010

CEI Adjunct Fellow Fran Smith talks about the EU-Korea free trade agreement that takes effect next year, and why the US-Korea FTA stalled, to the…

Trade and International

Blog

Timothy Geithner, Political Strategist

By: Ryan Young
10/06/2010

The TARP bank bailout program polls poorly. Timothy Geithner, in recent remarks, subtly reminded voters that the hated bailouts were originally a Republican proposal. It's…

Subsidies and Bailouts

Blog

Skilled Immigrants: More, Please

By: Ryan Young
10/06/2010

For every H-1B position requested, U.S. technology firms increase their employment by five workers. The government's artificial limit on skilled immigration is prolonging the recession.

Labor and Employment

Blog

The 10:10 Project and Zeno’s Paradox

By: Ryan Young
10/05/2010

Annual 10 percent reductions would move emissions asymptotically towards zero. That's a fancy way of saying they never actually get there.

Energy and Environment

Blog

Mises on Political Parties

By: Ryan Young
10/05/2010

With a fiercely partisan election less than a month away, the concluding paragraph of Ludwig von Mises’ Liberalism is a refreshing rejection of party politics.

Blog

CEI Podcast – September 30, 2010: William F. Buckley

By: Ryan Young
09/30/2010

Jeremy Lott, a former Warren Brookes Fellow at CEI and an editor for RealClearPoltics, talks about his new book, William F. Buckley.

Blog

Regulation of the Day 151: Water Heaters

By: Ryan Young
09/27/2010

The EPA recommends setting your water heater to 20 degrees Fahrenheit. But OSHA recommends setting it to 140 degrees Fahrenheit. Why the difference?…

Consumer Freedom

Blog

CEI Podcast – September 23, 2010: The Frankenfish Myth

By: Ryan Young
09/23/2010

CEI Senior Fellow Greg Conko, author of The Frankenfood Myth, talks about the promise and imagined peril of genetically modified salmon.

Consumer Freedom

Blog

Study: Regulations Cost $1.75 Trillion in 2008

By: Ryan Young
09/21/2010

State and local regulations, of course, cost extra.

Regulatory Reform

Blog

Regulation of the Day 150: Toy Guns

By: Ryan Young
09/17/2010

Samuel Burgos is 8 years old. One day he brought a toy gun to school in his backpack. That got him expelled from his Miami…

Consumer Freedom

Blog

New CEI Podcast: Creating High-Tech Jobs

By: Ryan Young
09/16/2010

Ryan Radia, CEI's Associate Director of Technology Studies, talks about obstacles and opportunities for job creation in the high-tech sector.

Regulatory Reform

Blog

Stimulus Roundup

By: Ryan Young
09/16/2010

Most people doubt Congress’ ability to spend money wisely. The stimulus has given them some proof.

Blog

Clearing the Way for High-Tech Jobs

By: Ryan Young
09/15/2010

Over at RealClearMarkets.c0m, my colleague Ryan Radia offer some ideas for how to create more high-tech jobs. Our main points:…

Regulatory Reform

Real Clear Markets

Clearing the Way for High-Tech Jobs

By: Ryan Radia, Ryan Young
09/15/2010

The U.S. economy may be growing again, albeit slowly. But employment rolls continue to languish. This frustrating state of affairs has left many Americans…

Business and Government

Blog

One Way to Create High-Tech Jobs

By: Ryan Young
09/14/2010

My colleague Ryan Radia and I recently sent this letter to The New York Times:…

Blog

Shifting the Burden of Explanation

By: Ryan Young
09/14/2010

For example, someone who opposes government-run schools is accused of opposing all education, period. Not a rigorous line of thought. But it's common.

Blog