News
Politico | Uncertain future for farm policy
The farm bill collapsed in the House on Thursday, the victim of continued divisions over food stamp cuts and the shape of future agriculture subsidies.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Fortune | E-commerce and the global battle for Internet economics
In the next five years, ecommerce competition could determine the world's most valuable company.
Forbes | With Gulliver Asleep, The Lilliputians Are Almost Done Smothering The U.S. Economy
Just as Swift’s fictitious Lemuel Gulliver’s strength wasn’t enough to overcome the cumulative effect of myriad tethers, so the American economy’s tremendous strength and energy have been progressively overcome and subdued by innumerable government (and its partner in crime, the Federal Reserve) interferences with the market economy. Taken individually, each intervention has been a minor nuisance in the economy; taken collectively, though, they have been subduing the American Gulliver.
Washington Times | Government gone wild
With each passing week comes more proof that President Obama’s government is out of control. The past couple of months alone have produced a long list of scandals
AEI | Overzealous intervention dooms the market
Those who want government guarantees for mortgages see them as a path to encourage homeownership and market stability, but instead guarantees pose needless risks to homeowners and taxpayers. Government guarantees suffer from three flaws: the inability and unwillingness to price for risk, asset allocation distortions, and the politicization of lending.
Blogs
WSJ | Boehner: Government ‘Arrogance’ Hurts Economy
House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio), told a business group Thursday that the political controversies surrounding the Obama administration — from problems at the Internal Revenue Service to surveillance of journalists by the Justice Department — are symptomatic of a government “arrogance” that is hurting the economy.
Politico | Fixing the fragile U.S. economy
It's hard for many Americans to look at the economic news of the last few days and not worry about the stability of the American economy. The Wall Street Journal asks this morning whether the drop in markets this week proves that investors are addicted to central bankers' policy of easy money. The question answers itself.
Fortune | Why Europe is a disaster zone for car companies
From cantankerous unions to soft demand, car makers of all stripes are finding the continent a vexing place to do business.
WSJ | Well Being Rises in Every State but Michigan
Michigan is the only state in the U.S. where the average resident’s well-being has declined from 2000 to 2010, according to a Measure of America report published by the Social Science Research Council.
Neighborhood Effects | Does economic freedom matter among wealthy countries?
In other words, at low levels of government spending, additional spending may be able to increase growth by financing things like property protection and public goods. But at higher levels of government spending, marginal increases in government size detract from growth as taxes become more distortionary and as government becomes less effective.
