Cato on Campus - Foundations of Liberty: Free Markets

Norberg on Open Trade

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 17:44:00 EDT

"Here's the eloquent, wise, and learned Johan Norberg -- speaking recently at the Cato Institute -- explaining some of the benefits of open markets." - Donald Boudreaux, Chairman of the Department of Economics at George Mason University

Seeing China Whole

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 17:21:00 EDT

By Steve Chapman: "Anyone contemplating the thuggish repression still prevalent under the Beijing government may find that hard to imagine. But if the last 30 years have taught us anything, it is not to underestimate China's capacity for positive change."

Economics Does Not Lie

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 09:37:00 EDT

By Guy Sorman: "If economics is finally a science, what, exactly, does it teach? With the help of Columbia University economist Pierre-Andr� Chiappori, I have synthesized its findings into ten propositions. Almost all top economists�those who are recognized as such by their peers and who publish in the leading scientific journals�would endorse them (the exceptions are those like Joseph Stiglitz and Jeffrey Sachs, whose public pronouncements are more political than scientific)."

Swedish Myths and Realities

Wed, 06 Aug 2008 15:03:00 EDT

"Johan Norberg, author of In Defense of Global Capitalism, sits down with reason.tv's Michael C. Moynihan to sort out the myths of the Sweden's welfare state, health services, tax rates, and its status as the 'most successful society the world has ever known.'"

Greasing the World Economy Without Doha

Mon, 04 Aug 2008 18:12:00 EDT

By Daniel J. Ikenson: "The Doha trade round died a thousand deaths long before this week. But outside the bureaucracies in Geneva, Brussels and Washington, few are grieving because the world economy has moved on."

The Grand Exaggerator

Mon, 28 Jul 2008 18:47:00 EDT

By Patrick Michaels: "OK, it's pretty much standard rhetoric in Washington to say that if you don't do as I say, there will be massive consequences. But to say, as Gore recently did: 'The survival of the United States of America as we know it is at risk;' and: 'The future of human civilization is at stake' � that's a bit much, even for the most faded and jaded political junkie."

New on Free Will: Bruce Caldwell on Hayek

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 15:44:00 EDT

"This week, I talk with Bruce Caldwell, author of Hayek�s Challenge, a wonderfully lucid, comprehensive, and penetrating account of the development of Hayek�s economic and methodological ideas. Hayek is one of my enthusiasms, so I had a great time talking to Bruce, who knows as much about Hayek as anyone." - Will Wilkinson

Don't Shed a Tear Over Bid for Beer

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 10:54:00 EDT

By John D. Burger: "An unsolicited bid by the Belgian-Brazilian conglomerate InBev to take over Anheuser Busch has set off a backlash among the American public. Protesters of the proposed deal are relying on patriotic slogans such as "Keep Budweiser American" in an attempt to rally the masses against the originally friendly but increasingly hostile takeover bid. I find this reaction terribly embarrassing."

Munger on the Political Economy of Public Transportation

Mon, 07 Jul 2008 19:39:00 EDT

"Mike Munger and Russ Roberts deliver one of the best podcasts ever. Munger describes the way in which moving from a private bus system to a public system in Santiago Chile made essentially everyone in the city worse off. The puzzle that Roberts keeps pushing Munger to resolve is why the political incentives do not work to abolish the public system and revert to a private system." - Bryan Caplan

A Matter of Life and Death

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 12:22:00 EDT

By Karol Boudreaux: "By some estimates South Africa has taken in over three million illegal immigrants in the past year - not just people in search of better jobs, but also Zimbabweans fleeing Robert Mugabe's reign. The unfortunate byproduct of this influx of immigrants is a longstanding and mostly dormant xenophobia that has reared its head. "

Mexicans and Machines: Why It's Time To Lay Off NAFTA

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 15:13:00 EDT

"Like technology, trade gives us more good stuff than bad�yet Americans are likely to cheer technology and fear trade. No doubt TV talkers and White House wannabes will keep stoking our fears of foreigners until voters and viewers stop buying it�or until robots snag their jobs, too."

In Defense of "Sweatshops"

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 12:20:00 EDT

Benjamin Powell: "Because sweatshops are better than the available alternatives, any reforms aimed at improving the lives of workers in sweatshops must not jeopardize the jobs that they already have."

Kidneys for Sale: Iranian Organ Donation

Tue, 13 May 2008 13:19:00 EDT

By Kerry Howley: "'What can Iran teach us about good governance?' is not a question often posed in Washington. But according to Benjamin Hippen, a transplant nephrologist in North Carolina, the Iranians have managed to do something American policy makers have long thought impossible: They�ve found kidneys for every single citizen in need."

The Biofuel Brew Ha-Ha

Thu, 10 Apr 2008 14:58:00 EDT

By Peter Suderman: Reason contributor Peter Suderman writes that the biofuels craze is boosting the price of beer, because farmers are shifting away from barley to biofuel crops made more lucrative by mandates and subsidies.

If I Were a Shill For Industry ...

Thu, 13 Mar 2008 15:37:00 EDT

By Donald J. Boudreaux: "A blogger recently complained that I (along with my fellow bloggers from George Mason University's Department of Economics) "seem to be shills for industry." This lazy accusation is as familiar as it is mistaken, for if I were truly a shill for industry ..."

The Five Dumbest Product Bans

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 15:07:00 EDT

By Eli Lehrer: "Even as the array of consumer products available to the average American expands each day, a bewildering variety of government regulations serve to limit consumer choice. From the aircraft on which Americans fly to the food they buy in the grocery store, government regulation limits product choice at every turn."

Health, Africa�s struggle

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 08:04:00 EST

By Thompson Ayodele: "Foreign aid in the form of hard currency is flowing in unprecedented quantities into the ministries of health of many African countries.

"But despite this generosity things are not improving: medical staff are demoralised, access to essential medicines remains low and corruption remains a serious problem."

(D) All of the Above

Wed, 05 Mar 2008 08:19:00 EST

By Daniel Ikenson: "As an advocate of free trade, I feel slightly vindicated by reports that the Obama campaign quietly assured the Canadian government that the Senator�s strident words about NAFTA in last week�s debate were merely political rhetoric. We�ve long been saying that opposition to trade is mostly an artifice of politics. But the story begs the question: Is Obama (a) economically illiterate; (b) dishonest, or; (c) na�ve. The answer is (d), all of the above."

Ohio Needs More Foreign Trade

Tue, 04 Mar 2008 08:17:00 EST

By Daniel T. Griswold: "But tinkering with a 14-year-old trade agreement [NAFTA] will not bring an industrial renaissance to Youngstown and other Rust Belt cites. The relative decline of those regions dates back to the 1960s and 1970s, when the American economy began a transition from heavy industry toward an information-based service economy."

Orders and Organizations

Wed, 27 Feb 2008 09:39:00 EST

By Don Boudreaux: "More generally, it seems difficult for some people to grasp the fact that society and government are not identical -- or, more precisely, to grasp the fact that civil society can and does often thrive outside of government influence and, indeed, very often (I would say most often) in spite of such influence."

Atlas Hugged

Tue, 26 Feb 2008 15:07:00 EST

Brian Doherty: "As executive vice president of the Cato Institute, Boaz is one of the media's primary go-to guys on libertarian thought and policy. And in his new book, "The Politics of Freedom," a collection of his short-form journalism from the past 25 years, Boaz pushes an interesting and counterintuitive belief about American politics. The political spectrum, he argues, contains a lot more libertarians than the two major party's stances would lead you to believe."

Living Large: America's Middle Class

Mon, 11 Feb 2008 18:48:00 EST

"To hear the Lou Dobbses and Bill O'Reillys of the world--not to mention politicians ranging from Ron Paul to Hillary Clinton--the middle class of America (however you define that term) has never had it so tough. Between credit squeezes, out-of-control immigration, rising costs of education and health care and everything else, it's all darkness out there for those of us who are neither millionaires nor welfare cases, right?
In 'Living Large,' Drew Carey and reason.tv examine the plight of the American middle class. What do they find? "

The Economics of Tolerance

Thu, 07 Feb 2008 08:18:00 EST

With Will Wilkinson: "When the economy's good, Americans tend to act better toward their fellow citizens. But commentator Will Wilkinson says in a sliding economy, we tend to slam the gates of opportunity."

Super Tuesday Winners and Losers

Wed, 06 Feb 2008 13:52:00 EST

Michael D. Tanner: "A few thoughts in the wake of last nights elections:"

Flex-Fuel Nonsense

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 15:51:00 EST

By Jerry Taylor: "Congress can no more guarantee that fuel prices will go down from now until the end of time than it can guarantee a robust sex life for fat, balding, middle-aged men. Fuel prices are subject to supply and demand curves that do not answer to Congress � particularly in global energy markets."