Why Government Subsidies Never Make Anything More Affordable

And why we can never get rid of them.

The chart from American Enterprise Institute could almost be this whole post. More...

“Risk free” Investing

TIPS May Be the Answer

Someone I know is coming into a moderate sum of money and asked me how he can invest it “risk free”. He was very clear that he isn’t looking for gain on the investment, just safety; so, although no investment can More...

Dodd-Frank and Me

The Magically Receding Bank Loan

Software companies usually don’t borrow money; I blogged long ago about the loan my old company couldn’t get to buy a switchboard. But in 2011 Mary and I More...

How the Fed and Dodd-Frank Killed Jobs

Every economist worth her or his salt has a theory about why the great recession was followed by a nearly jobless recovery. Historically, lots of jobs are created in a surge when the economy is recovering; didn’t happen this time; many people left the work force and never came back.

I’m n More...

Moore’s Law and the Economics of Abundance

Moore's Law explains why the price of everything electronic keeps going down; but now Moore's Law is starting to have an effect on much more than technology prices The costs of energy, medicine, law, education, financial transactions, and government itself are falling because of Moore' More...

Increase in DC Housing Prices a Negative Indicator

The Washington, DC area was one of only two US Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) in which housing prices increased year-over-year according to the latest release of the More...

Rebate Ripoff

The Chevy Volt is a great example of why government incentives are a terrible way to accomplish policy goals: much of the rebate money goes to paying people for what they were going to do anyway. Another share of the rebate goes to increased margins for whoever is selling the favored product.

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Nuclear Plants Shouldn’t Be Subsidized Either

Existing nukes are among the cheapest sources of electricity we have. They don't emit CO₂ or anything else (other than water vapor) into the atmosphere. There is a solvable (see below) problem with nuclear waste.

So should new nuclear plants be built? The decision should be More...

End Federal Wealth Insurance

We need to cure a national addiction to government-guaranteed debt. Proponents of government loan guarantees for things like mortgages, nuclear power plants, college loans, and small businesses tout the worthiness of the projects that are being encouraged. IMHO, the main beneficiaries of these pr More...

Government Money Drives Out Private Capital

The damage that government subsidies to business do the economy is far worse than just the cost to the treasury; government money drives out private investment. Government money stifles innovation; government money destroys jobs. Government's role is to regulate; it can't do that effectively when More...