The Competitive Enterprise Institute believes the proper role for government is to provide consumers with accurate, unbiased guidance that informs consumer choice. But, whether it is the substances we prefer, how we entertain ourselves, what dietary habits we maintain, or how we pursue personal health, consumers ought to have the right to make decisions for themselves.
Consumer Freedom Issue Areas
Featured Posts
Blog
New York City breadlines
Zohran Mamdani, a candidate for New York City’s mayoral Democratic primary, proposes to address the city’s housing and affordability crisis through rent control (rent freezes…
News Release
Consumer sentiment rebounds in first reading for June: CEI analysis
University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment report showed a rebound in its first reading for June, likely due to slower-growing inflation and a calmer-than-expected month…
Blog
The SCRUB Act: Washing away Washington’s regulatory grime
The Searching for and Cutting Regulations that are Unnecessarily Burdensome (SCRUB) Act, introduced today by Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA), is a key step …
Search Posts
Blog
Twisting the Law to Punish Heretics: Elane Photography v. Willock
Judges are supposed to interpret laws narrowly if a broader interpretation would potentially encroach on religious freedom. For example, in NLRB v. Catholic Bishop…
News Release
On National Donut Day, Be a Patriot – Eat One for Yourself, One for Your Freedom
Washington, D.C., June 1, 2012 – In a week that New York City’s mayor announced a planned ban on large-size sugary sodas, consumers have…
Blog
New York City Mayor Michael “Nanny” Bloomberg Wants To Ban Super-Sized Soda
The infamous mayor, known for instituting paternalistic food policies, like banning trans fats and Four Loko, limiting salt, regulating calories, is at it again.
Blog
Lawyer Arrested for Constitutionally Protected Blogging Against Convicted Bomber, After Hearing Before Judge C.J. Vaughey
Earlier, I wrote about how a judge in Montgomery County, Maryland (a liberal bastion), had silenced a critic of convicted "Speedway Bomber" Brett…
Blog
CPSC Commissioner Challenges Precautionary Principle
Most of the time regulators focus on issuing rules, pushing paper, and often making business more difficult than necessary. But every once and a while,…
Blog
Long Commutes Will Kill You? A Brief Response to Matt Yglesias’s Post
Slate blogger Matthew Yglesias, a center-left economics writer whose work I generally enjoy reading, has a new post up with the title, "Long Commutes…
Blog
Injunction Imposed Over Blog Posts That Criticized Convicted Terrorist-Turned-Left-Wing Activist
In 2005, a New Mexico judge appalled people across America by issuing a restraining order against David Letterman after a wacky woman accused Letterman…
Blog
When Schools Are Like Jails — Or Worse
A 17-year-old Texas honor student has been jailed for missing too much school. Diane Tran works both full-time and part-time jobs, in addition to taking…
Blog
Senate Vote Today on FDA, Supplements, and Energy Drinks
Today, the Senate will vote to reauthorize and modify the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) prescription drug and medical device user-fee program (…
Mackinac Center
Improve Michigan’s Economy with Alcohol Sales at Farmers Markets
Michigan farmers are on the cutting edge of the buy local trend, a movement that could provide a great boon for businesses and the state’s…
Blog
EEOC Restricts Speech in Viewpoint-Discriminatory Manner in Dawson v. Donahoe: De Facto Ban on Confederate Flags
The First Amendment generally protects even offensive speech, so if you wish to wear a t-shirt celebrating a bloodthirsty thug like Mao, Stalin, or Che…
Blog
Techno-Phobic California Politicians “NHTSA” Google’s Driverless Car
Last week, I wrote about Google’s amazing new self-driving car, which CEI General Counsel Sam Kazman and I had the opportunity to test-ride in…
Blog
EPA’s Design to Strong-Arm the Chemical Industry
If you believe the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, its Design for the Environment (DfE) program is an example of a voluntary effort to protect…
Blog
Land of the Free? Part 2: The Real War on Women
"How could it be illegal to sell something that it's perfectly legal to give away?" -- George Carlin The recent extra-curricular exploits of American Secret Service…
Blog
Facebook, Overregulation, and the “Cheers IPOs”: Unshackling the Next Facebook and Its Investors
Whether or not a retail investor buys shares of Facebook when it finally goes public tomorrow -- and OpenMarket provides public policy, rather than investment,…
Blog
Cyberbullying and Bullying Used As Pretexts for Censorship
In the name of fighting “cyberbullying,” many New York legislators would like to force blogs to remove blog comments that offend readers, unless they…
Blog
CEI Podcast for May 10, 2012: Freeing Our Farms
Current immigration policy keeps many immigrants in dangerous black markets, raises food prices for consumers, makes it difficult for farmers to hire workers and create…
Blog
Legacy Risks
European and American political and private institutions have made many non-sustainable retirement promises over the last 50 years. These promises cannot be kept and that…
Blog
Farm Bill Needs Real Reform, Not New Entitlements, Say Free-Market Groups
CEI joined with 10 other free-market groups in a letter today urging Congress to take on real reform of agricultural subsidies in the next…
Blog
Endocrine Disrupters: Should We Fear Mother Nature?
A recent article published in the The New York Times touts a new report that claims to have finally proven that trace…
Blog
Alcohol Regulatory Roundup: Honor Mexico Edition
In honor of Cinco de Mayo I'll start today's alcohol regulatory roundup with some international news from Mexico: People are up in arms over…
Blog
Education Department Pushes Racial Quotas in School Discipline
At Point of Law, Ted Frank of the Manhattan Institute criticizes the Obama Administration's demand for de facto racial quotas in school discipline:…
American's for Tax Reform
DC City Council Pushes for Higher Taxes on Consumers
From ATR.org: Don’t just take ATR’s word for it. In today’s Washington Times, Michelle Minton of the Competitive Enterprise Institute highlighted the…
Washington Times
Letter to the Editor: D.C. Alcohol Tax Increase Will Hurt Servers
Council member Jim Graham’s proposal to increase the District’s liquor excise tax by 6 cents a drink is not as innocuous as he claims…
Blog
Liquor Tax Hike Would Hurt the Little Guys
D.C. Councilmember Jim Graham’s proposal to increase the alcohol excise tax by “6 cents a drink” is not as innocent as he makes it…
Blog
Court Rules State Biotech Food Labeling Mandates Preempted By Federal Law
It’s been a few years since biotech foods have been regular front page news. The anti-technology activists cried wolf a few too many times, and…
Blog
Alcohol Regulation Roundup: April 27, 2012
It's time once again for a review of the ever-changing, increasingly complex, regulation of alcohol around these United States. This should give you something to…
Blog
My Weekend with Hitchens at NASCAR
Last weekend, there was a public memorial service at Cooper Union in New York to commemorate the voice of the late Christopher Hitchens. I…
Blog
TSA in the News
Pat-down reduces a woman to tears in Madison, WI, a supermodel is searched with surprising thoroughness, and a frustrated flyer strips naked in Portland, Oregon.
Blog
Land of the Free? Our Insane and Unjust Drug War
Americans have long beat their chests and bragged about their liberties. But more and more these are empty boasts -- the land of the free…
Blog
Congressional Hearings Question National Toxicology Program’s Science
Today, the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee and House Small Business Committee held a joint hearing on the National Toxicology Program's (NTP)…
Washington Times
Technological Challenges Aside, Is Asteroid Mining Legal?
From Rebecca Boyle’s article in Popular Science: Some space colonization advocates argue that guaranteeing ownership of celestial real estate is a necessary precursor…
Washington Times
Dick Durbin’s Backward Approach to FDA Reform
It is a tragedy when a patient suffers or dies because the drugs that could help him are simply not available. In recent years, the…
Washington Times
Sugar Program Isn’t Sweet for Consumers or the Economy
Don’t look now, but here comes the farm bill, one of those catch-all legislative behemoths littered with wasteful programs and supported by entrenched special interests.
Washington Times
Profit Shouldn’t Be an Alien Concept
From The Gulf Coast Business Review: Although Star Trek fans are not alone in thinking it would be fun to take a cruise…
Blog
Another Dubious TSA Trifecta
Stolen iPads, harassing drag queens, and a former TSA chief calls for reform -- three years after his departure.
Washington Times
Direct Alcohol Shipping To Minors Is Not a Public Safety Problem
(Also published by the Franklin Center for Government & Public Integrity) If you’ve ever had a remarkable local beer while traveling, you may…
Blog
Regulation of the Day 218: Bagpipes
Street musicians were recently banned from playing bagpipes in Vancouver, British Columbia. Just in time for the city’s Scotland Week celebration, Mayor Gregor Robertson happily…
Blog
San Francisco Judge Dismisses Lawsuit against McDonald’s over Happy Meals
"In San Francisco, Judge Richard Kramer has dismissed the Center for Science in the Public Interest’s lawsuit on behalf of parent Monet Parham seeking to…
Blog
Regulation of the Day 217: Being Rude
The mayor of La Torba, Spain recently issued a 65-point Courtesy Charter making it illegal to burp in public or slurp your soup, among other…
Washington Times
Could Legal ‘Loophole’ Lead to Land Claims on Other Worlds?”
From Alan Boyle’s post on MSNBC.com: The concept was unveiled last week by Rand Simberg, an adjunct scholar at the Washington-based Competitive Enterprise…
Washington Times
Stalking a Claim on the Moon
From Jeff Foust’s article in The Space Review: The current round in the debate over property rights in space started with the publication…
Washington Times
Legal Loophole May Pave Way For Private Ownership Of Outer Space
From Andres Jaregui’s article in The Huffington Post: A shift in policy could open up the moon and other celestial bodies to ownership…
Washington Times
Loophole Could Allow Private Land Claims on Other Worlds
From Adam Mann’s article in Wired: Full blown colonization and settlement of other planets, moons and even asteroids might actually happen, says space…
Blog
Witch Hunt Continues on Bisphenol A
This week the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) yet again reaffirmed the safety of the chemical Bisphenol A (BPA), but the witch hunt for…
Washington Times
Ground Control To Major Tom…Keep It Local, Man…
From Anita Cooper’s article in RealtyBizNews: Competitive Enterprise Institute’s Adjunct Scholar, Rand Simberg, has been working to make the recognition of lunar property…
Blog
What Left-Wing Law Professors Really Think About You, and the Role of Lawyers
You're just a lab rat to be socially re-engineered by activist judges and lawyers -- who think they know how to run your life better…
Blog
Pink Slime and the Slimy Tactics of America’s Food Elitists
Last week, the Media Research Center’s Dan Gainor wrote a nice article examining how the mainstream media has been complicit in smearing…
Washington Times
GOP Elders Conflicted About Future NASA, Commercial Space Projects
From Gene J. Koprowski’s article in The Daily Caller: This week, the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based free-market think tank, released a…
Blog
Regulation of the Day 216: Selling Ice Cream to Kids
A group of parents in Brooklyn's Park Slope neighborhood want to ban ice cream vendors from parks. One parent wrote, “I should not have to…
