By Shawntia Nicholson The COVID-19 pandemic has placed policymakers in a tricky position, Gov. DeSantis included. He and others are forced to find a balance between protecting public health and safeguarding individual freedom. One of Gov. DeSantis’ signature initiatives is a ban on agencies and businesses that might want to impose a universal mask requirement … Continue reading DeSantis undermining individual freedom, conservative principles | Opinion
Saudi Arabian Entrepreneur Advances Women’s Rights in the Middle East
By Kristen Carpenter and Giovanna DaSilva Earlier this year, Saudi Arabia became the first country to grant a robot by the name of Sophia full-fledged citizenship. Critics noted that while Sophia can roam the streets of the country unaccompanied, Saudi Arabia’s female citizens are not afforded this right. After all, women are still prohibited from … Continue reading Saudi Arabian Entrepreneur Advances Women’s Rights in the Middle East
Economic Freedom Key to Cities’ Success
By Matt Kelly Economic freedom is the unrestricted ability of people in a country to associate and transact with one another. Measuring economic freedom has become a growing area of academic research. Probably the best known measure is the index constructed for the “Economic Freedom of the World” annual report on 159 countries published by … Continue reading Economic Freedom Key to Cities’ Success
Preparing Florida’s Government Policy for The Next Big Hurricane
by Chad Thomas Political and economic conditions in New Orleans before 2005 left the city unprepared for Hurricane Katrina. The government bureaucracies responsible for levee maintenance were mismanaged and corrupt officials diverted needed funds. Weak economic performance before Katrina also set up affected areas for slow recovery afterward. New Orleans’ experience shows how government can … Continue reading Preparing Florida’s Government Policy for The Next Big Hurricane
Measuring Liberty: The Economic Freedom of the World Index
By Matt Kelly Defining freedom can be a difficult endeavor, yet the ability to compare relative economic and social liberties among countries is of significant importance for economic research. With that aim in mind, Florida State University professor and DeVoe Moore scholar James Gwartney and Robert Lawson of Southern Methodist University, have compiled the Economic … Continue reading Measuring Liberty: The Economic Freedom of the World Index
Normalizing Relations with Cuba: A Step Forward
Original post date: December 23, 2014 Article by: Matt Kelly In a recent statement, President Obama suggested Congress lift the 54 year long trade embargo on Cuba and announced concrete steps he and the communist nation’s president Raul Castro would take to normalize relations. The controversial statement elicited mixed responses from legislators, news media, and … Continue reading Normalizing Relations with Cuba: A Step Forward
Uber Wars Transcend Party Lines
Original post date: September 08, 2014 Article by: Ben Douglas 6/8/2023 Edits: Some links that were no longer working have been fixed. High-ranking Republican officials have recently come out in support of Uber, the innovative but legally-troubled ridesharing app that connects drivers and passengers. Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus penned an op-ed in the … Continue reading Uber Wars Transcend Party Lines
Equal Access to Transportation, a Right?
Original post date: November 06, 2013 Article by: Anonymous 5/16/2023 Edits: Some links that were no longer working have been fixed. Ray LaHood, the recently retired secretary of the Department of Transportation, said that equal access to transportation is “one of the most fundamental of American rights.” Mobility is a crucial aspect of life for … Continue reading Equal Access to Transportation, a Right?
Go Green, Don’t Expand Transit
Original post date: November 04, 2013 Article by: Ben Douglas The careful application of economics to policy reveals a host of ironies. Minimum wages create unemployment among the very unskilled laborers policymakers intend to help. Rent control destroys housing in the very cities it is intended to save. Adam Smith’s entire concept of an “invisible hand,” … Continue reading Go Green, Don’t Expand Transit
Transit Reform in Santiago: Part II
Original post date: October 22, 2013 Article by: Ben Douglas 5/16/2023 Edits: Some links that were no longer working have been fixed. The success of any endeavor is dependent upon the metric being used. If the goal of transit reform in Santiago, Chile was the elimination of profit from transit and the homogenization of bus … Continue reading Transit Reform in Santiago: Part II
The Pope, Entrepreneurship, and Human Dignity
Original post date: March 20, 2013 Article by: Sam Staley 5/8/2023 Edits: Some links that were no longer working have been fixed. The new Pope may be more sympathetic to entrepreneurship as a way to alleviate poverty than previous pontiffs. He seems to understand that individual freedom and liberty are essential to creating wealth, and … Continue reading The Pope, Entrepreneurship, and Human Dignity
Do Left-Leaning Cities Oppose New Housing?
Original post date: February 25, 2013 Article by: Anonymous Matthew E. Kahn of UCLA’s Institute of Environment concludes in a study published in the Journal of Urban Economics that cities with a majority of citizens registered in political parties with liberal tendencies—the Democratic Party, Green Party, and Peach and Freedom Party—issued fewer new housing permits … Continue reading Do Left-Leaning Cities Oppose New Housing?