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LibertyWeek 82: Lessons from Chile
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Chris Horner Debates Global Warming and Al Gore
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Regulation of the Day 120: Fish Tanks in Barbershops
In Tenneessee, it is illegal for barbershops to have fish tanks. That could change as soon as today, though.
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Voltaire on Government
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Ralph Nader’s shocking solution to the Toyota “problem”
The answer to the problem of Toyotas running amok, says Ralph Nader in a Los Angeles Times op-ed today? Choose one response: 1. More…
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Good quotes from the Honda case
Quotes from the court’s order. On the appropriateness of disparate class treatment (pp. 25-29): Courts generally are wary of settlement agreementswhere some class…
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Torches, Pitchforks, and Congress
“It occurred to me that this panel would only take place, of the industrialized nations, in the United States of America. That in every other…
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Biden announces retirement (savings program)
Vice President Joe Biden announces retirement (savings program). If only we were so lucky. (In reality, it doesn’t matter. As he recently said,…
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CEI Weekly: Marlo Lewis’ Music Video Against Climate Change
CEI weekly is a compilation of articles and blogs from CEI's staff. This week features Marlo Lewis' music video, "How I was not Al Gored…
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Obama Names SEIU’s Stern to Deficit Commission
President Barack Obama has appointed Service Employees International Union (SEIU) President Andrew Stern to a new commission tasked with coming up with recommendations to…
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Disturbing parallels between the Toyota hysteria and the Audi 5000 debacle
Toyota stands accused of 34 sudden acceleration incidents over the last 10 years that are “linked to” or “associated” with fatalities, a figure that in…
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E-Verify is a Spectacular Failure and Should be Abandoned
The Wall Street Journal today reported that the E-Verify system, a Federal database designed to identify undocumented workers and prevent their employment, fails to…
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Regulation of the Day 119: Bake Sales
School bake sales are basically banned in New York City. Mayor Bloomberg and the city’s Department of Education worry that they contribute to child obesity.
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Toyoda’s coerced confession
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If we want elephants to die off, we only need to do what we’re doing
They can be saved, however. Dan Hannan in London talks about “privatising” the elephant (and watch the video): To us, elephants are…
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The Internet as medical diagnostic tool scores again!
I was having extreme itching in my toes that I’ve never experienced before. I reconstructed the circumstances under which it arose, plugged them in, and…
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In-Flight Wi-Fi: Security Threat?
An article in this month's Infotech & Telecom News on a TSA proposal to ban in-flight wi-fi quotes me at length. Here's what I had…
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Banks trying to recoup from bad loans and inadequate reserves urged to lend
There’s a juxtaposition in a Washington Post article today that deserves a “Wha?” The article focuses on the huge drop in bank lending in…
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Lessons from Snowpocalypse: Fire the DDOT
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Conning the can makers regarding bisphenol A
A Washington Post A1 article, “Alternatives to BPA containers not easy for U.S. foodmakers to find,” makes the case very nicely. The plastic hardening…
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Regulation of the Day 118: Unlicensed Dogs
In Los Angeles, it is illegal to own a dog without a license. Packs of wild, unlicensed dogs roam the streets at night. People are…
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The government’s conflict of interest in the Toyota witch hunt
You don’t need to look for ulterior motives in the government attacks on Toyota, which include not just the current congressional hearings but such things…
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Victory in Honda case
At Monday’s fairness hearing, Judge Phillips upheld our objection to the coupon settlement; Legal Newsline has coverage. Here is our reply brief,…
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Who are the biggest CO2 emitters?
I am posting Benchmarking US Air Emissions (2006), a joint report by Ceres, NRDC, and PSEG, because it apparently is no longer available on the Internet,…
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Bhagwati on climate change — please, no
In today’s Financial Times, noted trade economist Jagdish Bhagwati strays again into the climate change debate – and he doesn’t apply his usually sharp…
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Regulation of the Day 117: Hot Dogs
The AAP says hot dogs are a choking hazard for children. According to the data, Little Timmy is literally more likely to be struck by…
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Dangerous Green Hysteria May Impact Food Safety
According to a story in today’s Washington Post, food and packaging companies are having a difficult time trying to find and employ alternatives to…
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LibertyWeek 81: CPAC 2010 in Review
Richard Morrison, Jeremy Lott and Marc Scribner give you Episode 81 of the LibertyWeek podcast. We cover CPAC 2010, Toyota’s reception in Washington, the credit…
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Credit CARD Act penalizes thrift and entrepreneurship; interchange fee controls would compound harm to consumers
Today, the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure (CARD) Act of 2009 goes into effect. While the law, passed last May, is being hailed as…
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Myths about Labor Myths
Sunday’s Washington Post features a supposed myth-debunking piece about organized labor that is so misleading that it’s hard to know where to begin driving…
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Stimulus Spending Helps the Few, Hurts the Many
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WaPo + “Climate Insurance” Translated
Today’s Washington Post editorial on global warming (“Climate Insurance”) is especially ridiculous. You can certainly read it for yourself, but I’m going to do…
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In the news
Forbes.com: interviewed discussing warning labels Los Angeles Times: quoted on the future feeding frenzy around Toyota Triangle Business Journal: commenting…
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Global warming as religion
Everything I write that I plan to place in a publication I first run past my best friend Matt, a truly gifted editor. One of…
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Regulation of the Day 116: Doodling on Desks
Alexa Gonzalez, 12, was arrested and put in handcuffs for writing "I love my friends Abby and Faith. Lex was here 2/1/10 :)" on her…
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CEI Weekly: Challenging the EPA
CEI weekly is a compilation of articles and blogs from CEI's staff. This week features CEI at CPAC 2010 and the new petitions made by…
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Basic Irony
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Getting it partly right on weather vs. climate
Eugene Robinson in today’s Washington Post protests that global warming skeptics are using the current (though very long) cold snap in the mid-Atlantic region,…
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We’re not #1 and it’s okay
Internet access is not a right. It is a privilege; one that we pay for. FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, while not explicitly demanding high-speed Internet…
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How I Was Not Al Gored Into Submission
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Regulation of the Day 115: Pancake Races
The secret to winning is to cross the finish line before your opponents do. That usually means running. The problem is that sometimes, running violates…
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George Will on Sarah Palin and the populist movement
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“Climate change of pace,” (the confessions of Phil Jones), my Forbes Online piece
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CEI at CPAC this week!
CEI is co-sponsoring the annual Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, DC, which is expecting to draw a crowd of some 9,000 -10,000 people…
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Not-so-Happy Stimulus Anniversary
The Obama administration and its allies are trying their hardest to put a happy face on the first anniversary of the the gargantuan $787-billion stimulus…
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No Fault Failure
On Monday, the RAND Corporation released a comprehensive overview of the no-fault insurance system and documented how the one-time darling of insurance systems has fallen…
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Veterinarians in OK aren’t horsing around
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Obama Defends Misguided Spending Stimulus on One-Year Anniversary
Today on the anniversary of Porkulus, President Barack Obama and his staff are defending the massive spending stimulus and sweeping financial, health care, energy…
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Bailout for the First Amendment vs. Preservation of Competing Biases
Clearly many groups contend there’s a “crisis” in journalism, even to the extent of advocating government support of news organizations, despite the dangers inherent…
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Disappointing, but Not Surprising
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One cheer for Obama on nuclear energy
Obama has done something right concerning nuclear energy; credit where credit’s due. But he also did something very wrong, which we’ll get to. The president…
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O’Neill on the Sorry Heritage of “Overpopulation”
At Spiked Online, Brendan O’Neil dissects the absurdity of neo-Malthusians who seek to portray themselves as intellectual mavericks, by presenting “overpopulation” as the environmental…
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Reason Prevails in Oregon
Oregon Senators this week have voted down regulations that could have led consumers to less safe, glass baby bottles. Three Democrats in the…
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The Case for Sugar
Happy Valentine’s Day, from Salon.com! According to Salon’s well-timed interview with food expert Brian Wansink, sugar isn’t the absolute evil you’ve been told it…
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Toyota “sudden acceleration deaths” suddenly accelerate
Predictably, in the wake of the media blitz about the alleged dangers of Toyotas suddenly accelerating, reports of fatalities linked (note: not “caused by”) such…
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Increase small biz lending not gov spending
President Obama seems to genuinely want to help people and improve the economy. However, he also seems to genuinely believe that the best and most…
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Bisphenol baloney takes another hit
In a provocatively entitled paper in the current issue of the prestigious journal Toxicological Sciences, Richard M. Sharpe asks “Is It Time to End…
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U.N. Climate panel pummeled for misinformation, high and low
From the very top of the earth to the bottom, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) just can’t get it right. I…
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Space, the final private frontier
Here’s a case for private space exploration in the Wall Street Journal. Indeed, if we can ever get rid of NASA and the FAA,…
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Preserve Liberty with an Opt-Out Principle
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Swine flu and heterosexual AIDS
About 57 million Americans, or something less than a fifth of the population, have contracted swine flu since April, the CDC says, of whom…
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Scientist at center of email scandal admits no recent warming
There has been no global warming for a long time, as I wrote recently in Forbes Online (“Show Me the Warming,” Nov. 30, 2009).
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Roundup of wisdom regarding the current weather icebox and the global warming debate
The Washington Post Sunday edition devotes a page to the discussion of what impact the current cold snap and immense amount of snow (a record…
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Pundits wiping “sneer” off Toyota’s face
Noteworthy is a tsk, tsk on page A1 of today’s Washington Post, “‘Toyota Way’ was lost on road to phenomenal worldwide growth.” More noteworthy…
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Of snow, shovels, and property rights
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CEA’s Annual Report: Trade is good, but we need to make sure it’s good for everyone
While snowstorms were raging in the D.C. area, the White House released…
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Flu Report Feb. 12 – What Swine Flu ISN’T Doing
As the CDC’s FluView Web site puts it, “During the week of January 31 – February 6, 2010, most key flu indicators remained about…
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Politics 101: Machiavelli and Public Choice
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Privatization in VA: Not as easy as ABC
As I wrote back in November at the Objective Standard’s blog (my colleague Ivan Osorio also wrote about the topic here), Virginia’s new…
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Act Now! Support a Bold National Elevator Plan
Last week I received Public Knowledge’s press release and letter urging support of a “Bold National Broadband Plan.” I admire PK a great deal on…
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Regulation of the Day 114: Unlicensed Fruit Candy
Department of Health inspectors seized, slashed open and poured bleach over thousands of dollars of local peaches, pears, raspberry and plum purees owned by pastry…
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Miss him yet?
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Government should spend nanodollars on nanotechnology.
At least that’s how my former colleague Tom Miller, now at the American Enterprise Institute, used to put it. Still another government/business funded report,…
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Toyota Recalls Put into Context by Edmunds.com
Edmunds.com, the premier online resource for automotive information, has obtained and reviewed the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaint database. A key finding:…
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Moveon.Org’s Disinformation Smear Campaign
Moveon.Org is running a series of TV ads accusing Senators Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), Ben Nelson (D-NB), and Mary Landrieu (D-LA) of “working to roll…
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Will Obama Recess-Appoint Becker?
With the nomination of former SEIU associate general counsel Craig Becker to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) most likely dead in the Senate, the…
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The Audi Super Bowl Ad’s Very Fitting Music
I fully agree with Marlo’s take on the Audi “Green Police” Super Bowl ad. It well parodies environmental zealots’ authoritarian instincts, while at the…
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Driving the Bus all the Way to the Bank
Investment bankers and lawyers, move aside. If you want a truly high-powered salary, try driving a bus. Last year, the Madison, Wisconsin’s highest paid city…
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The Economics of Charging for Airline Amenities
As of May 1, American Airlines will charge $8 to customers who want to use a blanket and pillow. Why don't they just include the…
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The Department of Pre-Regulation
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Audi Super Bowl Ad: Working Both Sides of Street? (Updated Feb. 10, 2010)
(Revised Feb. 10, 2010. My conclusion was rushed, because I wanted to leave the office before the snowstorm suspended bus service from D.C.-area metro stops. Revisions…
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Ronald Coase — a recent video
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Regulation of the Day 113: Throwing Snowballs
Two students at James Madison University in Virginia were charged with felonies for throwing snowballs at a snowplow and an unmarked police car.
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Constructive criticism on my wind farms blog
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CA Judges Standing Firm on Condoms in Porn
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Today is “Safer Internet Day”
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Sen. Shelby Lifts Holds
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Social Security, Health Care, and Partisan Hackery
Megan McArdle points out a delicious piece of partisan hackery. Go read her whole post. It's great.
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Federal Government Shuts Down Due to Snow
There is great wisdom in Mark Twain’s famous adage: “No man's life, liberty, or property are safe while the congress is in session.”…
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A disease cluster scare implodes; a new one is born
Yesterday I wrote that a scare over a scleroderma cluster in South Boston had been resolved when the state department of health found no…
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“Monopoly” in a media saturated world
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Regulation of the Day 112: Importing Pork Rinds
The federal government is loosening its restrictions on importing pork rinds from Brazil.
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The Objections to Wind Farms
Despite massive subsidies, wind power still only provides about two percent of U.S. energy. Part of the problem is inherent. It takes a lot of…
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Another “man-made” disease cluster solved
What man-made pollutants were causing the mysterious cluster of scleroderma in South Boston? Scleroderma is a rare, incurable, sometimes fatal illness that hardens muscles and…
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American Spectator’s Tom Bethel writes about my views on Wikipedia
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No More Education. Please.
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Regulation of the Day 111: Buying Wine in New York
It is illegal for grocery stores to sell wine in the state of New York. Only liquor stores are allowed to sell the stuff.
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“Health Care Freedom” Bills Pass Virginia Senate
The Virginia State Senate passed “health care freedom” bills giving citizens the right not to be forced to buy health insurance. This sets…
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Do Corporations Have Free Speech Rights? The Supreme Court’s Ruling in Citizens United v. FEC
In the Citizens United case, the Supreme Court recently struck down restrictions on…
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