Toilet Paper Econ 101
April 11, 2020 – Dan Sanchez …… The real mystery is full shelves, not empty ones. Continue reading →
Life and Health Are at Stake as the Economy Grinds to a Halt
April 10, 2020 – Cory D. Carpenter …… The quality of the models being used by politicians to set COVID-19 policy is only as good as the data collected. Unfortunately, the data is not very good. Meanwhile, real costs arise from the ruined economy. Continue reading →
Yes, There Are Tradeoffs between Disease Prevention and Economic Destruction
April 9, 2020 – Claus Wiemann Frølund …… Noneconomists struggle to realize that scarcity results in the necessity of tradeoffs. During the COVID-19 pandemic, this difference in thinking causes them to wrongly accuse economists of “prioritizing money over lives.” Continue reading →
Why We Need Free Markets To Fight Pandemics
April 2, 2020 – Matthew Tanous …… What needs to be done in such a crisis is not to attempt to steer the market to ensure it provides what is needed, but to let it free to do what it always does: match the goals of entrepreneurial producers with the needs of the populace. Continue reading →
This Is Not a Recession—This Is a Government-Imposed Shutdown of the Private Sector
March 31, 2020 – Hunter Hastings …… We are about to enter a production slowdown—a collapse, really—not because some businesses miscalculated their investments, but because government intervened drastically and without warning to shut down many businesses. Continue reading →
Flexibility Is Needed for Economies to Cope With COVID-19, Not $2,000 Checks
March 22, 2020 – Zilvinas Silenas …… True economic resilience comes from the ability to adapt to changes, not ignoring or masking them. Continue reading →
A Government Monopoly Led to Botched COVID-19 Test Kits, but Private Labs Are Now Saving the Day
March 16, 2020 – Ben Johnson …… The basic economic truth is that competition improves results. Continue reading →
6 Things We Learned from Prohibition
March 9, 2020 – John Phelan …… In a book on prohibitions, John Meadowcroft of King’s College in London offers several “generic lessons and implications” of the practice. Hint – prohibition does more harm than good. Continue reading →
Citizens Applaud Quick Demolition of Barn After Politicians Give It Heritage Protection
March 5, 2020 – Lee Friday …… Private property should NOT be subject to government heritage protection. It is morally wrong, and economically counterproductive. Continue reading →
Why the Pilgrims Abandoned Common Ownership for Private Property
March 4, 2020 – Lawrence W. Reed …… The first few years of Plymouth colony were fraught with hardship and hunger. Economics had a lot to do with it. Continue reading →