Monthly Archives: August 2011

Did Spending Cuts Cause the UK Riots?

Posted on August 15, 2011 | Comments Off on Did Spending Cuts Cause the UK Riots?

Here’s a letter I recently sent to The New York Times:

TO THE EDITOR:

 Richard Sennett and Saskia Sassen worry in their August 11 op-ed that government spending cuts may be causing the UK riots. They also hint at what that could imply for the U.S.

A problem with their argument is that government spending in the UK has gone up sharply over the last decade. Government spending there is currently about 45 percent of GDP. In 2000, it was only 34 percent. There were no riots then.

A similar story has played out in America. When President Clinton left office, federal spending was 18 percent of GDP. Now it is 24 percent.

If spending cuts cause riots, then we should have nothing to worry about. The fact that we do means something else must be behind the looting.

RYAN YOUNG
Washington, D.C. Aug. 11, 2011
The writer is a fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute.

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Regulation of the Day 195: Fitted Sheets

Posted on August 15, 2011 | Comments Off on Regulation of the Day 195: Fitted Sheets

California’s state legislature is poised to pass SB 432. It would, of all things, make it a crime for hotels to use non-fitted sheets. Here’s the relevant section of the bill:

The standard shall require all of the following:

(1) The use of a fitted sheet, instead of a flat sheet, as the bottom sheet on all beds within the lodging establishment. For the purpose of this section, a “fitted sheet” means a bed sheet containing elastic or similar material sewn into each of the four corners that allows the sheet to stay in place over the mattress.

This writer is a fan of fitted sheets. I even use them at home. But it is unclear why a law is necessary to require California hotels to use them. Hotels that don’t already have them would be forced to take a financial hit at a time when business is down. SB 432 is hardly an engine of job creation.

California is one of the few states with a full-time legislature. Perhaps they should consider becoming part-time. Giving them less time to satisfy their urge to regulate unimportant business decisions in astonishing detail could only help California’s ailing economy.

It would also make for fewer stories like that of entrepreneur Erica Douglass, is leaving California because of its hostile business climate.

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Brewers 2, Pirates 1

Posted on August 15, 2011 | Comments Off on Brewers 2, Pirates 1

The Brewers win another one-run game. The key plays were a strikeout and sacrifice fly that both led to runs; baseball can be a strange game.

The Cardinals’ slump now appears to be over. They beat Colorado 6-2.

Milwaukee’s magic number is 37.

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Brewers 1, Pirates 0

Posted on August 14, 2011 | Comments Off on Brewers 1, Pirates 0

The offense only managed one run, but it was enough. The victory is Milwaukee’s 15th in its last 17 games.

Down in St. Louis, the Colorado Rockies beat the Cardinals 6-1.

The Brewers’ magic number falls by two. It is now 38.

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Brewers 7, Pirates 2

Posted on August 12, 2011 | Comments Off on Brewers 7, Pirates 2

Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder hit back-to-back home runs, for probably the last time as teammates.

More surprisingly, relief pitcher Francisco Rodriguez, now in his tenth season, got his first big league base hit. He now has a .500 career batting average (2 career at-bats).

Ted Williams hit a mere .344 (7706 career at-bats).

Elsewhere, the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Colorado Rockies 6-1.

Milwaukee’s magic number goes down to 40.

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Cardinals 5, Brewers 2

Posted on August 12, 2011 | Comments Off on Cardinals 5, Brewers 2

Albert Pujols went 4-4, and the Cardinals avoided a sweep.

The Brewers return home today for a series against Pittsburgh. The Cardinals will stay home and play the visiting Colorado Rockies.

Milwaukee’s magic number remains 41.

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The War on Lemonade

Posted on August 11, 2011 | Comments Off on The War on Lemonade

Besides today’s CEI Podcast, Iain Murray and I have a column over at Townhall.com about Lemonade Freedom Day:

Bureaucrats have the power to pick winners and losers—a power many are happy to exploit. Lydia Coenen of Appleton, Wisconsin, recently learned about this dark side of competition. Appleton hosts an Old Car Show every year near her house. She and a neighbor have been selling lemonade and cookies to passersby for the last six years. This year, they were shut down by police. Vendors inside the car show didn’t appreciate the competition, so they convinced the city council to ban concession sales within a certain radius of the Old Car Show, putting young Lydia and her friend out of business.

Read the whole thing here; the Lemonade Freedom Day website is here.

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CEI Podcast for August 11, 2011: Lemonade Freedom Day

Posted on August 11, 2011 | Comments Off on CEI Podcast for August 11, 2011: Lemonade Freedom Day

 

Have a listen here.

Vice President for Strategy Iain Murray talks about the rash of children’s lemonade stands being shut down by police, and his plans to celebrate Lemonade Freedom Day on August 20. Started by Robert Fernandes, families across the country will set up lemonade stands in their neighborhoods without going through the permits and inspections that many towns now require.

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Brewers 5, Cardinals 1

Posted on August 10, 2011 | Comments Off on Brewers 5, Cardinals 1

The Brewers are on a roll. Tonight’s win guarantees a series win against the Cardinals. Even if they lose tomorrow, they can go home happy. For a team that’s played poorly on the road all year, 5 wins on a 6-game road is pretty good. And if they win tomorrow, they return home a perfect 6-0.

The all-important magic number? Down to 41.

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Regulation of the Day 194: Facebook Friends

Posted on August 10, 2011 | 2 comments

Missouri has a new law that bans teachers from becoming Facebook friends with any current or former student. The goal is to prevent inappropriate teacher-student relationships.

There are several points to make here. The first is that this is what parenting writer Lenore Skenazy calls “worst first” thinking. It’s rooted in black swan bias, a cognitive defect in the human brain that overestimates the frequency of rare but horrifying risks. Black swan bias has led to, among other things, the creation of the TSA.

Here, the concern is pedophilia. Statistically, it is extremely rare. But it is so horrifying that legislators and the parents who vote for them take precautions completely out of proportion to the actual threat. They assume the worst first. Ready, FIRE!, aim.

Another point is that prohibition doesn’t work; if a teacher-student relationship is going to happen, preventing a Facebook friendship won’t stop anything. Such trysts existed long before Facebook did. This law treats a symptom rather than the disease. And the disease is, frankly, not entirely preventable. That doesn’t make it right; that’s just how it is.

The law, though sloppily written, does have a modicum of common sense. If both parties are 18, they are legally allowed to become Facebook friends. As someone who regularly interacts with former grad school professors online, this is a relief.

It’s a bad idea for underage students and their teachers to become Facebook friends. That’s why most teachers don’t allow it. For those that do, a law is unlikely to stop them. Few teacher-student Facebook friendships turn into anything unseemly. And if any do, statutory rape is already illegal.

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