Compassion Compromised by Contradictions
“California has some of the nation’s highest housing expenses, the most expensive gas, and the third highest overall cost of...
Gary Galles
From Republic to Democracy to Kakistocracy
At the end of the Constitutional Convention, when Benjamin Franklin was asked what form of government the delegates had given...
Helping Y’all Understand Protectionism
Donald Trump, the self-proclaimed “tariff man,” imposed a panoply of tariff increases in the misguided attempt to stimulate American production....
Association, Causation, Expectations, and Caveat Civis
Economics focuses on how changes in incentives facing self-interested (not necessarily selfish, but desiring command over more resources to advance...
Understanding “Underpaid” Workers
People frequently allege that, under capitalism, employers don’t pay workers what they are worth to them. Gallup reported in 2018...
Free Riding, Expressive Voting and Charity
America is an amazingly generous country. Citizens invest large amounts of time, effort, and money to help the poor and...
With Friends Like These, Who Needs Enemies?
Few Presidents have wrapped their protectionism in the American flag to the extent Donald Trump did. But all recent Presidents...
A Drinking Man’s Guide to Monetary Policy
There is an old expression—to drive someone to drink—which means to annoy them to distraction. My favorite version of it...
A Reality Czar? What Could Possibly Go Wrong.
In his April 25 American Enterprise Institute post, “Obama is Wrong About Regulating Disinformation,” Mark Jamison disputes Barack Obama’s recent...
Senioritis: It’s Not Just for Slackers Anymore
As a professor at an “early semester” university, where we graduate several weeks before many other schools, I sometimes notice...
Learning Street Corner Economics in London
As an economics professor, one concern I have long had is that I don’t want to limit how I train...
More Poison from Twitter
In response to Elon Musk’s all-cash takeover offer for Twitter, its board of directors has adopted a one-year shareholder rights...
