Regulatory Policy

April 20, 2014

Which Countries Want You to Have a Baby?

It is a recipe for demographic disaster when you have too many old people and not enough babies. The problem is the size of the working […]

April 16, 2014

How To Cope With (Water) Stress

Being water stressed means you are unusually vulnerable to a water shortage. Sort of like a household where one emergency can push it over the edge because it […]

April 13, 2014

One Reason That Quitting is Good

I have read that Fed Chair Janet Yellen is particularly interested in JOLTS. Representing Job Openings and Labor market Turnover Survey, JOLTS data tell an interesting […]

April 11, 2014

Should Detroit Sell Its Art?

During 2009, a still life painted by Henri Matisse was sold at a Christie’s auction for $46 million. The Detroit Institute of Arts owns Poppies, also a […]

April 9, 2014

The Big Impact of a Little Salamander

The woodland salamander made me think of Adam Smith. In North American forests, wherever it is dark and damp, under a rock or a log, a […]

March 22, 2014

The Unintended Consequences of Banning Ivory Sales

New US ivory regulations have had unintended consequences. During November 2013, the US government “pulverized” nearly 6 tons of elephant ivory from Asia and Africa. Intending to […]

March 21, 2014

The One Big Reason We Can’t Really Cut the Federal Deficit

It is tough to be a deficit hawk.   Rather than our typical spike in wartime spending, we have a peacetime deficit. (Please note that the federal […]

March 11, 2014

Venezuela Has Cheap Gas But No Cars

At the official exchange rate, Venezuelans pay 5 cents a gallon for premium gasoline while the real price is closer to one half penny a gallon. The […]

March 7, 2014

How Much Will You Pay For the HOT Lane?

The results of dynamic tolling appear to be surprising the Florida Department of Transportation. Alone in your car on Florida’s I-95, you no longer have to […]

February 27, 2014

B(T)FF… Best Trading Friends Forever

We can say that Mexico believes her top trading partner is the United States because the value of her exports to the US (2013: $370,826,831) added to the […]

February 16, 2014

What Can We Learn From Downton Abbey Economics?

Downton Abbey can tell us a lot about the British economy…but not everything. We know the aristocracy is struggling. Many of the 700 families who had […]

February 13, 2014

Problems With Grade Deflation

The number of hours we study is down and our grades are up. Between 1961 and 2003, full time college students diminished their study time from […]