Think Like an Austrian: Puzzle #18
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Economic Liberty
New Edition of "Freedom in the Fifty States"
The Cato Institute recently published the latest edition of its ranking of personal, economic, and overall freedom in the states.
Cato Institute Call for Papers on Constitutional Protection for Economic Liberties
Winning submissions will be included in a symposium, and get a $2000 honorarium.
IRS Targeting More Supposedly 'High-Income' Americans Than Advertised
Don’t count on that promise to not hike taxes on “people making less than $400,000.”
Despite the Doomsday Narrative, Global Inequality Has Significantly Declined
This progress has been widely shared, to the great benefit of the people at the bottom of the distribution.
Barbie Girls Now Live in a Much Wealthier Barbie World
The average working woman in 2023 earns enough money to buy a Barbie doll every 33 minutes. In 1959, it took nearly two hours.
The Democratic Governor Who Wants Drug Legalization and Free Markets
"Government in general does a lot of things that aren't necessary," says Jared Polis.
Two Cheers for the "Freedom Conservatism" Statement of Principles
It has many good points. But I have some reservations and questions.
Indiana Constitution Protects Long-Established Unenumerated Rights, Including Personal and Economic Rights
So the Indiana Supreme Court held yesterday, though it concluded that, as to abortion, this is limited to situations where the abortion is necessary to protect the woman's life or health.
Georgia S. Ct.: Right to Pursue Lawful Occupation Invalidates License Requirement for Lactation Consultants
The court so holds applying the Georgia Constitution's Due Process Clause, which the court had long interpreted as securing a right to pursue a lawful occupation.
Ron DeSantis Dangerously Blurs the Line Between State and Private Action
Whether the putative target is the "biomedical security state," wokeness, "Big Tech censors," or Chinese Communists, the presidential candidate’s grandstanding poses a clear threat to individual rights.
Conservatives Pushing 'Common Good Capitalism' Sound a Lot Like Progressives
The ideology champions the same tired policies that big government types predictably propose whenever they see something they don't like.
This California Bill Would Mandate Punishment of Marijuana Debtors Without a Hearing
To address an "unpaid debt bubble," the proposed law would dictate contract terms and require regulators to intervene in commercial disputes.
Ian Vásquez: COVID Accelerated the Global Decline in Human Freedom
Overall human freedom peaked in 2007, according to the Cato Institute, and governments' COVID response merely exacerbated the trend toward a radically less-free planet.
SEC to Coinbase: Nice Crypto Exchange You Got There, It'd Be a Shame if Something Happened to It
Coinbase says the agency's assault will "only drive innovation, jobs, and the entire industry overseas."
New Regulations Won't Stop the Next Bank Collapse
Plus: Another campus free speech debacle, foreign cheese groups lose Gruyere trademark case, and more...
Federal Employees Don't Like Paying Taxes Either
Uncle Sam's own workers owe $1.5 billion, and growing, in unpaid taxes.
Meet the Students Pushing Back Against Socialism
"It's very easy for politicians to legislate freedom away," says Northwood University's Kristin Tokarev. "But it's incredibly hard to get back."
Do Young Conservatives Still Care About the Free Market?
"It's not about money or jobs or fiscal conservatism," one CPAC attendee told Reason.
FTC Commissioner Resigns To Protest Agency's 'Disregard for the Rule of Law'
Chair Lina Khan has flouted the rule of law and due process, Commissioner Christine Wilson wrote.
End the Fed? A Soho Forum Debate
Economists Lawrence H. White and Frederic Mishkin debate whether the Federal Reserve should be replaced with free market institutions.
Andrew Koppelman Responds to Critics of His Book on Libertarianism [Updated]
The response is part of the Balkinization blog symposium on his book " Burning Down the House: How Libertarian Philosophy Was Corrupted by Delusion and Greed," in which I was among the participants.
Free Trade Would Boost the Economy, But It's Not on the Ballot
Joe Biden adopted his predecessor’s protectionism, threatening our peace and prosperity.
The Press Idolizes Politicians. Instead, It Needs To Hold Them Accountable.
Newspapers deserve a great deal of credit for the expansion of freedom over the past 200 years. But the media have lost credibility.
Don't Hold Your Breath Waiting for a Post-Pandemic 'Return to Normal'
We’re likely to be poorer, distrustful, and less free for years to come.
Federal Court Upholds Washington, DC Regulation Requiring Child Care Workers to Have College Degrees
The decision may be in accordance with Supreme Court precedent. But if so, it underscores that precedent's flaws.
Gavin Newsom Thinks California Is Freer Than Florida. Is He Crazy?
If Newsom wants to pick a fight with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, he should try a different topic.
Economic Liberalization on Israeli Kibbutzim Increases Support for Markets
Even socialist kibbutzniks can come to appreciate the benefits of markets when given a chance to directly compare them to socialism.
Revised Version of My New Article on "Immigration and the Economic Liberty of Natives"
The article is now up on SSRN. It explains how migration restrictions have massive negative effects on both "negative" and "positive" economic liberty of residents of destination countries.
Globalization Is Alive, Well, and Changing
America can join with more free trade or it can miss out.
Fed Report Shows Who's Actually Using Crypto and How
Millions of lower-income or unbanked people are more likely to use cryptocurrency as a payment method.
Getting Paid in Bitcoin
Unfortunately, an automatic crypto purchase made with after-tax earnings won't lower your taxable income.
Why Are the Feds So Mad About Bitcoin Retirement Investing?
The Department of Labor and Sen. Elizabeth Warren have strong opinions about Fidelity’s new 401K option
Cities Force Businesses to Oversupply Parking Spaces. A Lawsuit Says That's Unconstitutional.
Azael Sepulveda is suing the city of Pasadena, Texas over its requirement that his autobody shop add 23 parking spaces he insists he doesn't need and can't afford.
My New Article on "Immigration and the Economic Freedom of Natives"
It explains how immigration restrictions massively diminish both the "negative" and "positive" economic liberty of natives of receiving countries.
Rand Paul, Thomas Massie Dine at Restaurant Shut Down for Ignoring COVID-19 Mandates
"My servers are not lesser people," said owner Eric Flannery. "They don't need to be masked. They don't carry disease."
Claim that "Certificate of Need" Law Lacks a Rational Basis Can Go Forward
“[T]he great deference due state economic regulation does not demand judicial blindness to the history of a challenged rule or the context of its adoption nor does it require courts to accept nonsensical explanations for regulation.”
How Erick Brimen Helped Launch a Honduran Charter City
"We want to attract international entrepreneurs and investors and become a financial center for the country and region."
Abbott's Vaccine Order Is Just as Oppressive as Biden's
Neither politician is willing to tolerate deviation from the one business policy he thinks is best.
Once a Communist Backwater, Georgia Discovered the Benefits of Free Markets. Now It Risks Abandoning Them.
"Government should be very small. It should just regulate the minimum."
California Judge Overturns Voter Initiative That Said Gig Workers Aren't Always Employees
Plus: You can't FOIA politicians' browser histories, Pentagon compels commercial airlines to evacuate Afghan refugees, and more...
If Texas Businesses Are Free To Require Face Masks, Why Can't They Require Proof of Vaccination?
Gov. Greg Abbott's position on private vaccination requirements is confused and confusing.
Kansas Wants This Experienced Eyebrow Entrepreneur To Get 1,000 More Hours of Training
Jigisha Modi can't hire her own mother-in-law—who has decades of eyebrow-threading experience—because of Kansas' occupational licensing rules. Now she's suing.
Judges Say Web Design Is 'Pure Speech' and That the State Can Compel It Anyway
Trump's critics fault him for fomenting division. The left's efforts to drive people of faith from the public square are making the problem worse.
