Black Markets
Ramen Noodles Replacing Cigarettes as Prison Currency
The rise of ramen noodles as prison currency can be blamed on cost-cutting that leaves prisoners hungry, says a new study.
Thank God Nobody Died From This Texas Woman's Illegal Tamales
Massive fines over a very common home-based business.
China's Other Cultural Revolution
Black markets, books, music, and sex in Mao's Middle Kingdom
After Winning Regulatory Battle Against Ride-Sharing Firms, Austin Turns to Black Market and Deregulation
The mess left in the wake of a battle with Uber and Lyft has city residents using illegal drivers to get around and officials considering dropping many rules
Trump's Plan for Making Financial Black Markets Great Again
The presidential wannabe's scheme will likely draw more illegal immigrants and fuel illegal evasion of capital controls.
How to Run a Drug Cartel
The black market is driven by the same forces as any other economic enterprise.
The Official Indictment of Rentboy.com's Founder Will Infuriate You
Human trafficking issues are raised to make site operators look bad, but the charges don't match.
El Chapo Got Caught. So What?
The flow of drugs will continue as long as there is a black market.
When Prohibitions Fail in Prison, How Can They Work in the World Outside?
Jailhouse black markets make a mockery of restrictions imposed in what are literally miniature police states.
When Governments Offer Empty Health Care Promises, Black Markets Deliver the Goods
From the Third World to the First World, officials can't exempt medicine from the laws of economics.
In the UK, Like America, Cash is King—of the Growing Shadow Economy
In an age of digital transactions, demand for British banknotes and coins continues to grow to satisfy off-the-books work.
A Nation of Smugglers and Protectionists
Americans have always limited trade-and always defied those limits.
A Rentboy.com John Speaks Out
'At this point, I would not be having sex, would not be engaging in any sexual release,' if there were no sex workers.
Millions of Americans Who Avoid Banks Offer a Peek at the Underground Economy
Much of the country buys, sells, and makes a living outside official scrutiny
After Silk Road, Online Illicit Marketplaces for Drugs and Weapons Grow, With More to Come
Anonymous sites do $500,000 per day in deals that make the powers-that-be twitch
Deep Web Director Alex Winter on Silk Road, Ross Ulbricht, and Online Privacy
Q&A with Deep Web director Alex Winter.
Commercial Cannabis Cultivators in Colorado Move Outdoors
Using sunlight instead of electric lights could cut the price of pot in half.
Abolish Cash? Hell No, Says German Economist. Notes and Coins Are 'Printed Freedom.'
Evading state control is a feature, not a bug
Control Freaks' Solution to Shadow Economy: Nag People and Abolish Cash
They'll try anything but lowering taxes and reducing regulations
Are Cigarettes the New Joints? Get Ready for Homegrown Tobacco.
It's a plant. It grows in dirt.
Be Sure to Score Some Smuggled Kinder Eggs for Easter
Caution! Toy-filled confection ahead.
New York Creates Massive Cigarette Black Market, Wants Virginia to Fix It
Because lowering taxes to reduce the incentive for smuggling is out of the question
California Officials in the Dark About Black Markets
State needs regulatory reform, not armies of new inspectors
Darkleaks: The Decentralized Information Blackmarket Opens for Business
Secrets for sale anonymously
Will Cigarettes Someday Replace Marijuana in the Drug War?
States see big increases in smuggling as taxes jump.
Venezuelan Fuel Subsidies Mean Cheap Gas—for Colombians
They should probably enjoy that cheap gas while they can get it.
Press Enter for Ecstasy
Wall Street Journal review of the new book, Drugs Unlimited: The Web Revolution That's Changing How the World Gets High, by Mike Power
This Is What Legalizing Marijuana Did to the Black Market in Colorado
Illegal pot dealers still undersell licensed marijuana merchants in Colorado, but their advantage may be fading.
Hypocritical Contractors Behind Intrusive New Law
Red tape is driving some workers underground, so already-licensed workers are calling for even more red tape.
Google Dark
In April an anonymous individual launched a search engine called Grams that caters to contraband needs.
