Is Google a monopoly? No. What about the National Association of Realtors—does it deserve this moniker? Certainly not. Did monopoly status ever fit Rockefeller’s Standard Oil of New Jersey? Not at all. How about IBM during its years-long antitrust case? Fuhgeddaboudit. Is monogamous marriage a monopoly? You’ve got to be kidding. Is the US Post...
Hurricane Helene’s devastation reminds us that we may be one disaster away from losing our homes and businesses and even the food and water we take for granted. When supplies are in high demand, whether before or after a disaster, sellers may be tempted to charge more simply because higher prices are what “the market...
The release of data on incoming freshmen this fall was watched keenly in light of last year’s Students for Fair Admission v. Harvard decision that effectively outlawed race-based affirmative action policies in college admissions. As the data have been released, the picture is mixed. Some schools have seen the expected results: a larger proportion of...
As hurricane season devastates communities across the United States, the debate over the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) role in disaster relief continues to intensify. With massive spending on recent disasters like Hurricanes Helene and Milton, and FEMA’s recent admission that it needs additional funds to meet its obligations, it’s time to ask an important...
The NATO alliance has recently wrapped up its 75th anniversary summit in Washington, DC. While most members of the trans-Atlantic foreign policy establishment took the occasion to celebrate the alliance’s longevity and call for another seventy-five years, the United States is at a crossroads with NATO. On the one hand, at the Munich Security Conference...
For all the attention given to economics by mainstream media and political pundits, our economic literacy as a society still leaves much to be desired. We opine on economic issues constantly, we deliver passionate soliloquies defending our partisan viewpoints, but rare is the occasion when we sit down and actually try to learn economics. The...
O’Keefe, Northwood University, and DBusiness are partnering to host “The State of the Economy and Role of Government in Emerging Markets,” a special presentation on Oct. 29 in Troy, Michigan. The morning presentation will feature insights from leading economic experts on government policy, emerging industries, and the current state of the U.S. economy. Speakers will...
Northwood University is thrilled to host a presentation about taxation by a leading figure in U.S. tax policy who is renowned for his ability to demystify complex tax issues. “As Washington lawmakers will face a fiscal cliff at the end of next year when most of the 2017 tax cuts expire, 2025 may well be...
A new study commissioned by the Department of Energy shows the potential for siting new nuclear reactors at existing and recently retired nuclear power plant sites across the country. This potential is notable because the permitting of new sites for reactors is a costly and time-consuming process that adds to the timeline and expense of...
Nearly two years ago, Kroger and Albertsons, America’s two largest traditional brick and mortar supermarket companies, agreed to a $24.6 billion merger. Ever since, the Federal Trade Commission has argued against allowing the merger, claiming that it would “lead to higher prices for groceries and other essential items” and “lead to lower quality products and...
What is institutional quality, and why is it important for economic progress? Institutions are the rules of the game that shape human behavior. They include laws, codes of conduct, and both formal and informal customs that structure interactions between people. Our expectations of how others will act in different situations depend on institutions. Stable institutions...
According to Princeton University economics professor Alan S. Blinder, writing in the Wall Street Journal, Kamala Harris is entirely correct in her intention to raise the federal minimum wage from its present “paltry” level of $7.25 per hour. In his view, an hourly $12 would be far more like it. His main argument is the...
Sean McNamara’s biopic about former President Ronald Reagan, now in movie theaters across the country, provides a timely occasion to reflect on some essential principles lost in today’s world, marked by the confrontation between left-wing wokeism and right-wing nationalism, two forms of collectivist interventionism. It would benefit the Republican Party to rediscover these principles, and...
In his popular 1971 book Rules for Radicals, Saul D. Alinsky identified ridicule as the most potent of all political weapons. “There is no defense. It is almost impossible to counterattack ridicule,” said Alinsky, a Chicago-based community organizer and activist. Ridicule is the recipe for Matt Walsh’s new documentary Am I a Racist?, a film...