BOHANON & STYRING:Breaking down the Purdue-Kaplan deal
Purdue University’s purchase of online college Kaplan University should be considered in the context of at least two economic principles: composite goods and division of labor.
Economic Analysis
Articles
BOHANON & STYRING: It’s time to own up to Social Security shortfall
No myth causes more mischief than the fiction of the “Social Security Trust Fund.
BOHANON & STYRING: What do price controls get you? Venezuela
Venezuelans aren’t eating high on the hog. Common people aren’t eating much hog—or anything else.
BOHANON & STYRING: Widely cited CBO scores have their shortcomings
CBO doesn’t look beyond immediate, first-order consequences of legislation.
BOHANON & STYRING: Same dance: Raise debt limit, spend, repeat
Sometime in early autumn, the U.S. Treasury will run out of cash and once again beg Congress to raise the debt limit.
BOHANON & STYRING: Making commodities free comes with a price
Sometimes paying for something is better than getting it for free. Enter private enterprise.
BOHANON & STYRING: Protectionism causes more harm than good
When there’s an international boundary involved, The principle of free exchange making everyone better off gets lost in a wave of “us” versus “them.”
BOHANON & STYRING: How market forces are reducing our emissions
A shift by utility producers from coal to natural gas is happening without any Paris Accord or a single regulation from the U.S. Department of Energy.
Survey: U.S. economists expecting slower growth
Most of the economists believe President Donald Trump will cut corporate and individual taxes before the end of 2018. That will have a positive impact on economic growth, but likely not until 2018, the survey said.
BOHANON & STYRING: Federal spending never forgets a crisis
During a crisis, government grows in scope, power and budget. All recede somewhat after the crisis. But never to pre-crisis levels.
BOHANON & STYRING: All this health care rhetoric is bad for our health
If society is determined to help those with expensive medical problems, the way to do it is … well, by helping those with expensive medical problems.
BOHANON & STYRING: Marsh liquor sell-off was an economist’s dream
Indiana’s byzantine liquor laws recently provided a clean textbook example—a natural experiment—of the Law of Demand.
BOHANON & STYRING: Strong U.S. government is desirable, within limits
The Federalist Papers regarded federalism and its cousin, the separation of powers, as surer bulwarks of liberty than anything written into the Bill of Rights.
BOHANON & STYRING: Gender pay gap is real–and there’s a reason for it
Women tend to choose lower-paying occupations, and are more likely to have career interruptions for childbearing/child care and for care of elderly relatives. This results in lower pay.
BOHANON & STYRING: Study vouchers but don’t limit availability
Assuming the government’s interest is in educating the child and not in providing employment at public schools, the state should be indifferent as to how and where the educating takes place.
BOHANON & STYRING: Don’t get carried away with ‘America First’
America First is a nice slogan, but let’s not push things too far.
BOHANON & STYRING: Those favoring robot tax driven by unfounded fears
the technological innovations of the last 60 years have replaced some jobs, but they have created new jobs that were unimaginable in 1957.
BOHANON & STYRING: Evaluation of health care plan was devoid of nuance
When the Congressional Budget Office scores a bill, it has to follow certain rules. Fair enough. But by nature, this excludes plausible details in the administration of the law.
BOHANON & STYRING: The economics of immigrating illegally are alluring
One doesn’t have to bless or even condone illegal immigration to understand the powerful incentives driving it.
BOHANON & STYRING: Border adjustment may be only path to tax cut
A revenue-neutral corporate-tax-rate cut, instead of border adjustment, could be financed by eliminating tax loopholes or raising other taxes. But these tax offsets fall on Americans.