Bad Negotiating Tactics

Posted on July 14, 2011 | Comments Off on Bad Negotiating Tactics

As debt-limit talks heat up, President Obama told Rep. Eric Cantor, “Don’t call my bluff.”

This implies that he was bluffing.

If the President wants to win the negotiations, he would be better off keeping that information to himself.

 

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Posted in Argumentation, Political Animals, Spending

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If Air Travel Worked Like Health Care

Posted on July 14, 2011 | Comments Off on If Air Travel Worked Like Health Care

This video is based on article by National Journal‘s Jonathan Rauch, which you can read here. I also recommend Rauch’s excellent book Government’s End.

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Posted in Health Care

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There Is Nothing Left to Cut

Posted on July 14, 2011 | Comments Off on There Is Nothing Left to Cut

Today’s Los Angeles Times:

The highest-paid state employee in California last year, a prison surgeon who took home $777,423, has a history of mental illness, was fired once for alleged incompetence and has not been allowed to treat an inmate for six years because medical supervisors don’t trust his clinical skills.

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Posted in Spending

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Regulation of the Day 183: Throwing Wet Sponges

Posted on July 11, 2011 | Comments Off on Regulation of the Day 183: Throwing Wet Sponges

Apparently British regulators don’t think their subjects are sponge-worthy. A long-running annual carnival event in Ulverston where participants throw wet sponges at each other was shut down last week by health and safety regulators.

They feared that the sponges would pick up dirt and grit from hitting the ground. Subsequent throws could then injure participants. Somebody could lose an eye.

The waterfight did happen as scheduled, fortunately. Instead of sponges, the combatants used Super Soaker squirt guns, which apparently comply with British health and safety regulations.

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Posted in Nanny State, Regulation of the Day

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TSA Pats Down 6-Year Old Boy

Posted on July 11, 2011 | Comments Off on TSA Pats Down 6-Year Old Boy

Twice.

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Posted in Security Theater

Schumpeter on Why People Are Bad at Arguing

Posted on July 8, 2011 | Comments Off on Schumpeter on Why People Are Bad at Arguing

It’s because people rely on ad hominems and straw-man arguments. These leave the opponents’ actual arguments untouched, and resolve nothing.

So true is it that, in science as elsewhere, we fight for and against not men and things as they are, but for and against the caricatures we make of them.

-Joseph Schumpter, History of Economic Analysis, p. 90.

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Posted in Argumentation, Books, Economics, Great Thinkers

Regulation of the Day 182: The Definition of a Hot Dog

Posted on July 8, 2011 | Comments Off on Regulation of the Day 182: The Definition of a Hot Dog

Having solved the state’s fiscal crisis, California’s state legislature has moved on to more important issues, such as the legal definition of “hot dog.” According to S.B. 946 [PDF, p. 32], that definition is:

“Hot dog” means a whole, cured, cooked sausage that is skinless or stuffed in a casing, may be served in a bun or roll, and is also known as a bologna, frank, frankfurter, furter, garlic bologna, knockwurst, red hot, Vienna, or wiener.

 The intention is to differentiate cooked hot dogs from uncooked sausage products.

Most states have part-time legislatures. California’s is one of the few full-time bodies. Every so often, there are calls to change that; maybe this hot dog bill will spark someone to move on that much-needed reform.

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Posted in regulation

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Strangely Specific Regulations

Posted on July 8, 2011 | Comments Off on Strangely Specific Regulations

People seem to want a government that solves problems. They have gotten exactly what they asked for. In the U.S., regulatory agencies employ over 270,000 problem-solvers. Worldwide, there are even more. When there are that many regulators, they will come up with some very creative problems to solve. The next someone tells you the economy is dangerously unregulated, refer them to this list:

  • In New Hampshire, it is illegal to have a ferret in your possession while on your way to a hunting trip.
  • Also in New Hampshire, ventriloquism is a licensed occupation.
  • In Juneau, Alaska, regulations prohibit animals from entering barbershops. Remember, humans are animals. And the city code doesn’t offer an explicit definition of “animal” that excludes humans. So technically, nobody is allowed inside a Juneau barbershop. Not even to water the plants, which are allowed. (Hat tip to Eli Dourado)
  • It is illegal to counterfeit cat and dog tags in Grand Forks, North Dakota.
  • If you’ve ever been in a duel, you may not work as a first responder in Kentucky.
  • Minnesota regulations prohibit washing teflon-coated cookware with abrasive sponges.
  • In New Orleans, it is illegal to inflate meat.
  • In Connecticut, it is illegal to use a white cane unless you can’t see it.
  • Delaware has a particularly postmodern regulatory code. In that state, it is a felony to wear a disguise while committing a felony.
  • In Indiana, it is a class B misdemeanor to dye birds and rabbits.
  • In Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is against city law to shake carpets in the street.
  • In La Plata, Maryland, taxis with three doors are illegal.
  • According to Chapter 9.32.040 of Moab, Utah’s city code, boobie traps are illegal.
  • All ice sold in El Paso, TX is required by law to be made inside city limits unless it’s made from distilled water.
  • It is against the law in Massachusetts for construction workers to wear stilts.
  • In Nevada, forgetting to close a gate is a misdemeanor.
  • In Fairfax County, Virginia, it is illegal to use a pogo stick on a city bus unless the driver specifically asks you to.

Modern America isn’t the only time or place where regulators pay astonishing attention to detail. Just for fun, here are a few strange rules from the other side the Atlantic:

  • 16th century England had antitrust regulations similar to our own. In an early example of preventing vertical integration, it was illegal to be both a tanner and a currier.
  • In England, it is illegal to turn off someone else’s lamp if both of you are on or near a city street.
  • In Turin, Italy, failing to walk your dog at least thrice daily is punishable with a €500 fine.

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CEI Podcast for July 7, 2011: How Much Does Regulation Cost?

Posted on July 7, 2011 | Comments Off on CEI Podcast for July 7, 2011: How Much Does Regulation Cost?

 

Have a listen here.

One federal government study says federal regulations cost $1.75 trillion. Another says it’s $62 billion. The difference is almost a factor of 30. Vice President for Policy Wayne Crews compares the two, and talks about the hazards of calculating regulatory costs and benefits. As it turns out, $1.75 trillion might be an understatement.

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Posted in CEI Podcast, regulation

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Proposed DC Taxi Regulations Would Harm Drivers, Customers

Posted on July 7, 2011 | Comments Off on Proposed DC Taxi Regulations Would Harm Drivers, Customers

One of the best arguments for free markets is that bad things happen when businesses and government get together. As with church and state, it’s better to keep them separate. DC residents are finding that out for themselves, as this video about proposed taxi regulations shows.

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Posted in Competition, Economics, Public Choice, regulation

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