The Open Market Blog

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 01/04/2008

I appeared on CNBC earlier today arguing in favor of sovereign wealth funds. (Which are foreign government-owned investment companies.) For whatever it’s worth, you can…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 01/02/2008

Our fine colleagues at Bureaucrash have long sold a t-shirt reading “Smoking is Healthier than Fascism.” Now, Illinois has apparently become the first state…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 12/28/2007

A new British government report has concluded that…wait…wait…wait.. getting rid of bad teachers will improve schools. Wow. I’m amazed.

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 12/26/2007

It’s Christmas Eve (although you probably won’t read this until some time after) and I’m sitting in front front of the television now watching the…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 12/26/2007

The Associated Press reports that a New York state judge has dismissed an airline industry suit against the state’s newly enacted Airline Passenger Bill…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 12/17/2007

This past weekend, I watched Juno. It’s the best film I’ve seen this year. (I’m not alone: Roger Ebert also loves it.) The film…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 12/05/2007

Earlier this year, CEI recognized Talk Like a Pirate Day. Today, December 5, many will mark The Day of the Ninja. For reasons…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 12/04/2007

Two scientists have found that divorce. . .wait…wait. . .wait. . .HURTS THE ENVIRONMENT. (In fact, they really didn’t find that directly, only that…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 11/30/2007

In recent years, conservatives and libertarians have gone up in arms over the United Nations Law of the Sea Treaty (LOST). CEI's own take on…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 11/30/2007

McAffee, a company that makes cyber security software, has released a report warning of a new “cyber cold war.” I’m skeptical of how big…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 11/26/2007

Men’s Health magazine has released its latest list of what it’s editors believe are the “worst” items on chain restaurant menus. Yawn! Unlike, say,…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 11/26/2007

Nearly everyone has an opinion about Sen. Trent Lott (who, the Associated Press reports, plans to resign from the Senate today.) My off-the-cuff judgment…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 11/08/2007

If you’re interested in the debate over Optional Federal Chartering for insurance companies, you may want to check out CEI’s new website OFC FAQ.ORG.

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 11/07/2007

That’s really all I have to say about Robopanda.

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 11/05/2007

The D.C. Preservation League recently announced its 2007 list of "most endangered" properties. While there's nothing wrong with historical preservation per se, the recent…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 11/02/2007

Ivan, As I’ve written before, I disagree with your post on the end of D.C.’s zone system. Washington cabdrivers are overwhelmingly independent entrepreneurs…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 10/29/2007

If you have an extra $2.5 million to spare, you can become the proud owner of The Robosaurus. Some specs from the web…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 10/23/2007

To the surprise of nobody, CBS canceled the bizarre murder mystery/musical/comedy Viva Laughlin after dismal ratings this past Sunday. Yes, the show was…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 10/18/2007

Alex, I mostly agree with your post but, well, I think that private enforcement of law in Medieval Iceland is an example of exactly…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 10/15/2007

Wayne told me about an NPR story about credit unions getting into the payday loan alternative business. My only comment is: Why didn’t they…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 10/15/2007

Today’s Washington Post carries a story decrying the growth of bank branches in the District of Columbia. Reporter Paul Schwartzman writes: District officials…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 10/12/2007

I’ll leave it to others who have thought far more about Al Gore’s work than I have but it’s worth noting that Nobel Peace Prize…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 10/11/2007

Dorris Lessing won the Nobel prize in literature today. I’ve never been a fan of her work myself. I don’t think I ever finished…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 10/09/2007

The Washington Post carries a…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 10/04/2007

As a Chicago native, I’m quite used to crooked elections. As a result, I got a huge kick out of this story from Reuters:…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 10/03/2007

The House Capital Markets Subcommittee is currently conducting the first in what I hope will be a series of hearings to discuss reform of insurance…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 10/01/2007

William, I disagree with your comments about compact florescent light bulbs (CFLs). They used to make you ugly but, well, they don’t anymore. Thanks…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 09/28/2007

The Washington Post carries a story about a minor dust-up between Naral Pro-Choice America and Verizon. Naral wanted to use Verizon’s mobile network to…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 09/24/2007

The Washington Post reports today that Unisys Corporation is under investigation for its failures to detect intrusions into government networks. I’m not surprised. Prior…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 09/21/2007

I don’t know what to make of it but DeSmog Blog–which seems pretty alarmist–reports that Dr. Klaus-Martin Schulte’s analysis of Global Warming journal articles…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 09/20/2007

Arrr. Shiver me timbers! Why hasn’t CEI done more t’ celebrate Talk Like a Pirate Day? Only one post? Although Seafarin’ heartys be, fer…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 09/19/2007

Wayne’s post got me thinking. Yes, of course, its absurd for Sen. Byron Dorgan to say that consumers somehow own fiber “pipes” that clearly…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 09/17/2007

As the health care debate heats up in Congress, in the media, and on the campaign trail, proposals to fix America’s health care system have…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 09/17/2007

A very interesting USA Today story points to investors’ flight from actively managed mutual funds largely in favor of index funds. In general, mutual…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 09/14/2007

The University of California, Irvine, has just made what appears to be a truly boneheaded move by withdrawing a left-wing law professors’ nomination to…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 09/12/2007

Well, someone had to do it. UnlikeWayne I don’t mind the freegans. Yes, they’re annoying and self righteous. But they do practice what they…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 09/11/2007

Of course, the study that Wayne cites isn’t the first of its type. One that comes to mind is Frank Sulloway’s study that…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 09/10/2007

Hans, I have three comments about what you say here. First, on paratransit. The paratransit service (MetroAccess) in this area is already run by…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 09/09/2007

I count myself amongst those who think Damien Hirst — he of the shark-in formaldehyde — a first-rate artist. His work is shocking, interesting, stimulating,…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 09/07/2007

Today’s very modest reported decline in overall employment, 4,000 jobs, appears to stem from the loss of about 6,000 mortgage industry positions. Most of…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 09/03/2007

The Washington Post carries a very interesting story about the growth of a Roman Catholic Religious Order. Two things I find interesting from a…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 08/31/2007

With Tim Johnson, the lead sponsor of the Optional Federal Charter for insurance companies back in the U.S. Senate next week, it’s likely that the…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 08/28/2007

New census bureau data shows a modest uptick in the number of Americans who do not have health insurance. (The number has not “soared,”…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 08/27/2007

Taiwan’s Acer has announced plans to acquire computer-maker Gateway. In its heyday during the 1990s, Gateway ran brash, folksy ads in just about every…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 08/24/2007

Today’s Inside Higher Ed reports on a very interesting study about college costs and drop out rates. According to the study (which costs $5.00)…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 08/23/2007

I came home Thursday to find an Light Emitting Diode (LED) light bulb in my mailbox. I had ordered it on ebay and paid…

• By: Eli Lehrer
• 08/21/2007

The today’s Washington Post carries an interesting story about the Louis Vuitton Tribute Patchwork bag. As you see from the picture, the bag…