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September 18, 2024

A Risk-Based Theory of Regulation and Regulatory Capture

George Stigler’s 1971 paper “The Theory of Economic Regulation,” stands as an important piece of economic research. While most of the profession was convinced regulation advanced the overall public interest by correcting market failures, Stigler showed that regulators could end up in the pockets of the industries they were supposed to supervise. The notion of…

September 18, 2024

Japan Offers a Glimpse into the Future

I’m writing this week from Tokyo, where I am participating in a fascinating symposium on “Energy Security and Global Warming in an Increasingly Uncertain International Climate,” sponsored by the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Public Policy (GraSSP) and the Institute of Energy Economic, Japan (IEEJ).(1) My contributions to the symposium focused on global rates…

September 17, 2024

Apple’s Tax Triumph Turned Sour: Is the EU Playing Fair?

In the world of tech and tax complications, the recent European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruling ordering Apple to pay a whopping €13 billion ($14 billion) in back taxes to Ireland has sent shockwaves through the corporate world. This verdict, which concludes an eight-year-long legal battle, ignited a fierce debate on whether the European Union is justified…

September 16, 2024

Is Joe Biden the “Drill, Baby, Drill” President?

My AEI colleague Roger Pielke Jr. argues in a recent post that “Joe Biden Is the ‘Drill, Baby, Drill’ President,” by virtue of the time trend for U.S. oil production on federal lands (onshore and offshore) for 2008-2023. In summary, Pielke reproduces the data on oil production from federal lands as reported by the U.S….

September 16, 2024

Punish the Administrators, Not the Researchers, for Campus Antisemitism

It is never wise to throw the baby out with the bathwater. But that is the perverse prospect we now face because of the striking failure of many college and university officials to confront campus antisemitism, both during the last academic year and now as the students return to campus. Political decisionmakers who view the performance of the administrators as unacceptable…

September 16, 2024

How the Vetocracy Paralyzes Progress 

Political scientist Francis Fukuyama is right, at least about one thing. The American political system is a vetocracy, a system ruled by vetoes. And in recent decades, this excessive power of the veto has paralyzed decision-making at every level, frustrating efforts to build homes, nuclear power plants, and solar and wind projects; add new hospital…

September 13, 2024

Europe’s Antitrust Misstep: How Its Decision Against Google Will Harm Consumers and Businesses

Alphabet, Google’s parent company, is one of the most profitable and valuable firms globally, and one of the most admired. That admiration, however, does not extend to government regulators. Google is currently facing over 100 investigations worldwide, and in some of its biggest cases this year, it has come out on the losing side. While regulators and Google’s competitors may be celebrating…

September 13, 2024

The Politics of American Energy Policy

In the U.S. presidential debate earlier this week, the Democratic nominee Kamala Harris offered a strong endorsement of not just the technology of fracking but also of fossil fuels: I was the tie-breaking vote on the Inflation Reduction Act, which opened new leases for fracking. My position is that we have got to invest in diverse sources…

September 12, 2024

Paying Off the Watchdog: Why California’s Funding of Journalism Is Wrong

California officials took a public relations victory lap month upon reaching an agreement with Google under which a combination of state taxpayer dollars and financial contributions from the technology giant will finance a “News Transformation Fund” to “support California-based state and local news organizations.” Governor Gavin Newsom called it“a major breakthrough in ensuring the survival of newsrooms and bolstering local journalism…

September 11, 2024

Voters Will Decide America’s Digital Future

America’s digital leadership is on the ballot this fall. One option, offered by the Republican platform, is to embrace the consumer-oriented and business-led economic policies that made the US the leading country for tech startups, AI research capacity, and creating world leading tech giants. The other approach, offered by the Democratic platform, would be to continue the course…