Monthly Archives: June 2008

Reading Roundup

Posted on by jsrule
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<>< Josh Rule : : 2008 MCPP Intern

Here are a few articles you should check out to start off the week:

- Gouging Consumers and Businesses Alike: Our very own Hannah Mead has a current comment up over at the Mackinac Center about some new gas-gouging legislation working its way through the state legislature and what should be done instead of passing this bill.

- Greenhouse Gas Accord will Further Damage Michigan’s Economy: Russ Harding has a great current comment at the Mackinac Center about a new cap-and-trade greenhouse gas agreement recently made between the governors of nine states in the Midwest and why it will not help Michigan in the long run.

- Aristotle on Mixed Economics:  The Mackinac Center’s Isaac Morehouse has an article up at the Ludwig Von Mises Institute about Aristotle’s ideas and how they relate to economics, particularly the blend of socialism & capitalism  (I bet you figured that out from the title, though).

Check them out, and let us know what you think in the comments below.

A Video Is Worth…

Posted on by hkmead
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-Hannah Mead, MCPP Intern, 2008

I think a metaphor is appropriate to describe my general assessment of governmental action. It seems to me that whenever a crisis hits, the government instinctively does the most counterproductive thing possible. Sort of like these goats:

(I actually just wanted an excuse to post that hysterical video, but I do think my metaphor fits pretty well.)

In What World Does This Make Any Sense?

Posted on by hkmead
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-Hannah Mead, MCPP Intern, 2008

OK, this is just mind-blowing. Florida’s 2005 Senate Bill 572 (link pdf) states:

Upon a declaration of a state of emergency by the Governor, in order to protect the health, safety, and welfare of residents, any person who offers goods and services for sale to the public during the duration of the emergency and who does not possess an occupational license under s. 205.032 or s. 205.042 commits a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.

Now, I haven’t bothered to look up s. 205.032, etc, but those really don’t matter. If everyone is exempt from the restriction then the bill is meaningless and only a ploy to make Floridians think their government is doing “something” about prices and shortages in emergency situations. If, however, the bill accomplishes anything at all, it is the most absurd piece of legislation ever. In what world does it make sense to ban the exchange of goods in an emergency when people are most in need of the most basic necessities? Maybe I’m just too blond, but I can’t wrap my mind around this.

Continue reading →

Don’t Be Fooled

Posted on by hkmead
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-Hannah Mead, MCPP Intern, 2008

Warren Meyer (Coyote Blog) rips into a new EU proposal to staunch fuel prices. The whole post is marvelous and well worth reading. However, I found his debunking of a misreported fact to be crucial:

I was amazed at the statement that BP made net profits of 63.4%.  It took me a while to figure out that this was the quarter over quarter profit growth, not the profit margin.  I can’t tell if these guys are just ignorant or if this is a translation issue into English, so i will give them the benefit of the doubt.  In case you are wondering, BP’s net profit margin in the first quarter of 2008 was 8.3% of revenues, which in the grand scheme of industry is actually below average.

[Note: Commenter Sameer Parekh corrects Meyers' figures a bit, taking into account the taxes on BP.]

That makes a big difference! I mean, even I was getting a little disapproving of BP when I read the bill’s statement that the company was making off like a bandit. It goes to show how important statistics are, and why so many people are so irritated with the oil industry.

Continue reading →

SCOTUS rules 5-4 against D.C. gun law

Posted on by lmruhland
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Lauren Ruhland, 2008 MCPP intern

The Supreme Court officially says that the Constitution protects the possession of firearms for self-defense purposes in a predictably split decision in District of Columbia v. Heller.   (They’re technically affirming a lower court’s decision, here.)  I’ll link to some people wiser and better-educated on the issue than me:  There’s lots on the first page at Hit & Run.  The Volokh Conspiracy‘s server is crawling.  Cato’s main site has content, but their blog is a little behind.

The obvious significance here is that, for the first time since the Bill of Rights was ratified, the right to bear arms is conclusively interpreted as an individual right and not a collective one tied to militia service.

Mackinac Center Current Comment : : 26 June 2008

Posted on by jsrule
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<>< Josh Rule : : 2008 MCPP Intern

Laura J. Davis wrote a great current comment today about university housing and privatization.  One of her better points, and one often overlooked, is that universities simply are not in the housing business.  They are educators, and the more they distract themselves with peripheries like housing, the more they disservice students by forgetting why those students are there in the first place – to learn.  It is true that they all need to be housed, but that is not why they traveled from around the world to attend that university.  If the education is good, though, students will find a way to house themselves, even if, as happened at my university, one or two end up living in the architecture studios.

Partisan Politics at Its Worst

Posted on by jimvote
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Jim Vote- 2008 MCPP Intern

 

While conducting some research recently, I came across this candid document on a UAW web site:  “Government Reform Proposal to Help Democrats.” It gave me a laugh, and I brushed it off, given the lack of sources and the overtly partisan nature of the presentation.

 

But now this proposal is gaining strength, and according to the Detroit Free Press, it will probably be on the ballot in November (“Voters may be asked to downsize Lansing”).  There are so many things wrong with it that I’m not really sure where to begin.  We’re all for ”right-sizing” and reforming state government, but the blatantly partisan nature of what this measure does to make that happen in disturbing. The redistricting provision, for example: A truly fair way would  be to have a Senate with a representative from every county, and a House that is districted based on population, not along partisan lines as proposed by RMGN. Yes this would create a larger Senate, but at least it would be fair and reasonable. 

 

The proposed Executive Branch cuts appear to be a response to the absence of a strong candidate to succeed Gov. Granholm.  The cuts in the Judiciary are a blatant response to the strict constructionist court Michigan currently enjoys.  The only “non-GOP” Justice position proposed for removal is a new appointee of the Bush Administration who is moving to the federal bench anyway.

 

Partisan politics has its place, but restructuring state government to play this game is wrong, regardless of who’s doing it.  Taking advantage of an angry and defeated population is unprincipled.  The truly scary part is that this proposal really could become law.  Michigan’s population is angry, but if their backlash assumes this form it will do nothing to solve the state’s real problems.

Thoughts on Michigan’s Unemployment Rate

Posted on by razma766
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Much of Michigan’s political establishment believes (or pretends) that the state’s unemployment rate rose to more than 8 percent last month because of high gas prices and the entry of young workers into the labor market. That begs the question, though: How is it that in previous years Michigan unemployment rate wasn’t similarly affected by the entry of young workers into the market? And how is that, although the whole nation is experiencing high gas prices, the national unemployment rate rose just  0.5 percent last month, compared to Michigan’s 1.6 percent? What’s the matter with Michigan?

  Continue reading →

Be Careful! E. Coli Infections in Michigan

Posted on by jsrule
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<>< Josh Rule : : 2008 MCPP Intern

I apologize in advance for this post not directly relating to liberty or free markets (I could do it pretty easily, but that is beside the point).  I wanted to let our Michigan readers know that a public health alert has been issued for Michigan because of E. coli infections around the state.  More than 15 people have been infected this month, and a significant numbers of cases have been caused by ground beef from Kroger grocery stores.  So, please be careful preparing meals with ground beef over the next few weeks.  But, enjoy the summer months.

Michigan Education Digest : : 25 June 2008

Posted on by jsrule
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<>< Josh Rule : : 2008 MCPP Intern

The new Michigan Education Digest is up, so go over and give it a look.  One particularly encouraging story concerns the Public Schools of Petoskey, which is continuing a private food services contract that has already saved the district over $150,000.  Small efforts like this one add up across the state to provide better, more competitive service, as well as more money in taxpayers’pockets.

Swabbing the deck? Let’s see your papers, please.

Posted on by lmruhland
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Lauren Ruhland, 2008 MCPP intern

Boaters would be required to get a discharge permit for all waste released into the water under an EPA proposal, mandating authorization for about 100,000 commercial vessels and 13 million recreational powerboats and sailboats across the country, the Bay City Times reports.

The original proposal was intended to prevent the spread of invasive species hitchhiking in ballast water, and this is a worthy and reasonable goal– organisms like zebra mussels and lamprey (among many others) have caused problems for the Great Lakes’native inhabitants and the ecosystem as a whole.  However, extending the requirement to include smaller non-commercial vessels isn’t going to make a significant impact.  Critics point out that as written, even rainwater that washes off the deck of small, engine-free sailboats would be considered “discharge” for which a permit is required.

I’m putting off digging through the actual proposal until later, but expect more on this subject.

Beat that dead horse

Posted on by hkmead
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-Hannah Mead, MCPP intern, 2008

I’m always baffled by Michigan’s economic improvement strategy: tax the successful businesses to subsidize unviable ones.

Commenting on new “job-creating measures,” Gov. Jennifer Granholm and Speaker of the House Andy Dillon remarked,

At a time when more job-seekers are entering the workforce, Michigan’s already battered economy is feeling the effects of a struggling national economy being driven by a crisis in the subprime market and high oil prices.

Their solution? Film incentives, tourism promotion (which focus, as my coworker regularly notes, is counteracted by our torn-up roads) and “a loan program for job creation or retention projects.”

The Mackinac Center’s Jack McHugh provides alternative analysis of Michigan’s obscene unemployment: Continue reading →

Mackinac Center Current Comment : : 24 June 2008

Posted on by jsrule
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<>< Josh Rule : : 2008 MCPP Intern

Phillip Seamon & Scott Taylor give us today’s current comment from Mackinac about the problem of, and answer to, citizen laziness.  Their conclusion is quite good, saying, “As long as we are looking for others to solve our problems, those problems will continue to exist, new ones will develop, and we will continue to lose our liberties and our greatness as a nation.”  Check it out.

With laws the land will be built

Posted on by lmruhland
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Lauren Ruhland, 2008 MCPP intern

A British man has declared his tiny home in the Shetland archipelago to be a crown protectorate.   Stuart Hill claims that a historical legal document granted the island of Forvik to the Scottish monarch as part of a wedding dowry in the 15th century.  In her capacity as Queen Elizabeth I of Scotland, the current British monarch is thus the rightful head-of-state and governor of the island, according to Hill’s reasoning.

This is located toward the end of Hill’s Forvik declaration:

There will be no income tax, VAT, council tax, corporation tax, or any of the other taxes instituted by the British government. The only tax is a contribution by every citizen towards the cost of running the state – the old Nordic scat. This will be initially set at a level of one forvik gulde per year – about £55 sterling at current gold values.
Forvik Island will have its own coinage backed by gold, its own stamps, and will register companies in a tax-free environment. Offshore banking and financial services will follow at a later date. Continue reading →

eBay Calls for Trading Freedom

Posted on by jsrule
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The Ebay logo during Ebay Explained 2006 at KLCC, MalaysiaPhoto from liewcf.

<>< Josh Rule : : 2008 MCPP Intern

BBC News just put up an article about eBay’s recent work to open up international trading restrictions, particularly within the European Union.  Current law makes it difficult, if not illegal, to trade goods across international borders as an online vendor.  Accordingly, traditional vendors are working to see these laws enforced to curtail online trading.  They do not want the extra competition deregulated online trading would bring.  eBay, though, has denounced these trading restrictions and promotes a system in which goods can be freely traded online, regardless of either the buyer or the seller’s geographical location. Continue reading →