Equal But Not the Same (Timeless Values)
Equal But Not the Same (Timeless Values)
In a world of change, the fundamental principles of The Northwood Idea are timeless. Under any circumstances, personal freedom and individual responsibility are essential for a free society. So it is illustrative to examine some of the most compelling expressions of The Northwood Idea that great thinkers have contributed through the years. We call them...
The Role of Tradition
The Role of Tradition
Have you ever wondered why society expects us to behave in certain ways? For instance, why is it seen as proper for a young person to hold the door for the elderly, help those in need, or honor their parents? Why is it deemed unacceptable to lie, steal, cut in line, or commit marital infidelity?...
Raising the Minimum Wage: Winners and Losers
Raising the Minimum Wage: Winners and Losers
The first federal minimum wage bill was signed into law during Franklin D. Roosevelt’s second term as U.S. President. The Great Depression gave Washington a pretext to enact sweeping economic restrictions. So, by 1938, Congress had made it illegal for employees to charge less than 25 cents per hour for their labor services. Today’s inflation-adjusted...
By Dr. Alex Tokarev
America’s Debt Crisis: Northwood University Posts New lesson in Free Enterprise Online Course
America’s Debt Crisis: Northwood University Posts New lesson in Free Enterprise Online Course
In celebration of Constitution Day this week, Northwood University has posted a fresh lesson in the Philosophy of Free Enterprise, a free online course for anyone interested learning about the importance of freedom and free-market economics. “It is fitting that this latest lesson — which explores America’s debt crisis — comes as we celebrated Constitution...
By Kate Hessling
Are Bad Climate Policies Causing More Deaths Than Climate Change?
Are Bad Climate Policies Causing More Deaths Than Climate Change?
During Vivek Ramaswamy’s recent event at the Cato Institute, protestors derailed his presentation by getting on stage and chanting “climate con-man,” among other similar allegations. But it’s not just rabbles of unknown activists accusing Ramaswamy of climate falsehoods. Last year, Ramaswamy said, “The reality is, more people are dying of bad climate change policies than...
By Saul Zimet
Protectionism’s Bad Economic History
Protectionism’s Bad Economic History
Protectionism is currently in vogue, gaining support from both the left and the right. This isn’t the first time. As protectionism’s popularity ebbs and flows, it remains a constant presence. Each resurgence is driven by variations of the same argument, particularly the infant industry argument. The argument is straightforward: protectionism, through tariffs or subsidies, helps...
By Vincent Geloso
College Football’s Lesson About Political Economy
College Football’s Lesson About Political Economy
Auburn University’s football team lost every game in 1950. As Bill Cromartie put it in his book Braggin’ Rights, a game-by-game account of the Alabama-Auburn football rivalry, “Alabama fans laughed, poked fun at and cracked jokes about Auburn.” The Auburn Tigers got their revenge in 1955 when they beat the Alabama Crimson Tide 26-0 to...
By Art Carden
How the FAA Is Keeping Flying Cars in Science Fiction
How the FAA Is Keeping Flying Cars in Science Fiction
Flying cars are used as a synecdoche for all of the 20th-century sci-fi dreams that never came true. But they shouldn’t be grouped with moon cities or Dyson spheres. Private, point-to-point aircraft as cheap as a Chevy Tahoe could have been available decades ago. We should have them by now and could have them soon...
By Maxwell Tabarrok
When Back-to-School Blues Signal a Deeper Problem
When Back-to-School Blues Signal a Deeper Problem
September’s crisp air once carried the promise of new beginnings for students. Fresh notebooks, sharpened pencils, and the excitement of reuniting with friends painted an idyllic back-to-school season. But for an increasing number of students and families, this annual rite of passage now brings a complex mix of emotions: anticipation tinged with anxiety, hope shadowed...
By Tobin Slaven
Is America’s Cultural Glue Weakening?
Is America’s Cultural Glue Weakening?
It’s hard to imagine a starker difference in political visions than between Trump-Vance and Harris-Walz. This could get ugly, so now is a good time to remind ourselves of what it is that holds us together as a nation and a people. America is a nation of immigrants who had very different ideas about all...
Why Corporate America Is Finally Retreating From Social Activism
Why Corporate America Is Finally Retreating From Social Activism
In January, Axios reported a developing trend in corporate America: corporations across the United States were backing away from DEI, which had become a “minefield” for companies. Following a multi-year boom in the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion space following the 2020 death of George Floyd, corporations were pulling back on DEI initiatives. The risks were...
By Jonathan Miltimore
Why Markets Plunged on This Year’s ‘Black Monday’
Why Markets Plunged on This Year’s ‘Black Monday’
August 5th was supposedly a “Black Monday.” Stock markets around the world suffered declines that were far greater than normal. The VIX Index, which measures the volatility of financial markets, reached a level not seen since March 2020. Financial turbulence always sparks criticism of speculation. John Maynard Keynes (1883–1946) thought that investors often fall prey...
By Sergio Martínez
Why Health Policy Problems Rarely Get Solved
Why Health Policy Problems Rarely Get Solved
For at least half a century, we have been struggling with three health policy problems that never seem to go away: cost, quality and access to care. This is the case even though public policy has been actively trying to solve all three—with increasing aggressiveness through time. Over the past 50 years, medical science has...
By John C. Goodman
Does a Construction Cartel Explain Rising Rents?
Does a Construction Cartel Explain Rising Rents?
To a man with an antitrust hammer, everything looks like a monopoly nail. In a recent Substack, antimonopoly campaigner Matt Stoller blames the rise in rents and anemic housing supply growth since 2007 on growing concentration in the home-building industry, rather than local land-use regulations, an explanation he attributes to “noisy” YIMBYs. Is he right?...
By Jason Sorens