The curious task of economics is to demonstrate to men how little they really know about what they imagine they can design. – F.A. Hayek
Posted in Government Gone Wild on Aug 19th, 2010
That’s what the clowns in Congress need. First, Clemens is indicted for lying to a bunch of liars. And about what? About an “illegal” drug that harms no one when used except the user, and for which the use was not explicitly banned by his league at the time.
But the schmucks in Congress get away [...]
Posted in Government Gone Wild on Aug 10th, 2010
In 2005, the American Society of Civil Engineers graded the nation’s water infrastructure a D-minus. The US Environmental Protection Agency has responsibility for the nation’s wastewater management. The EPA itself estimates that 25% of the nation’s sewer pipes were in poor or very poor condition. They also estimate that this share will rise to 50% [...]
Posted in Government Gone Wild, Regulation on Aug 6th, 2010
Because, you know, 7 year old girls regularly poison people, and adults don’t have the good sense to think that a 7 year old’s stand might not be the most clean thing ever. Even if it was to “protect the public health” how does a $120 fee accomplish it?
It’s hardly unusual to hear small-business owners [...]
Posted in Government Gone Wild on Aug 4th, 2010
I really don’t know how I can comment on these. Here is a sampling of what the preposterous pontificating plunderers have done with your money:
Abandoned Train Station Converted Into Museum (Glassboro, NJ) – $1.2 million
The Glassboro train station was … unused for nearly 40 years, it now sits boarded up and riddled with graffiti. In [...]
Posted in Government Gone Wild on Aug 3rd, 2010
“The Justice Department threatened several universities with legal action because they took part in an experimental program to allow students to use the Amazon Kindle for textbooks …
…
The Civil Rights Division informed the schools they were under investigation. In subsequent talks, the Justice Department demanded the universities stop distributing the Kindle; if blind students couldn’t [...]
Posted in Environment, Government Gone Wild on Jul 25th, 2010
Our ethanol follies reduce a ton of carbon for the cost of $754 per ton. In case any of you were wondering what the social costs of CO2 are (i.e. the evil bad horrible negative externalities caused by our voracious capitalistic consumption of fossil fuels and meat) they are somewhere in the $25 to $50 [...]
Posted in Government Gone Wild on Jul 23rd, 2010
The government’s recipe for brownies is … 26 pages long. You cannot make this stuff up.
The Pentagon’s brownie recipe is 26 pages long. Among the ingredients: water that conforms to the “National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (Copies are available from the Office of Drinking Water, Environmental Protection Agency, WH550D, 401 M Street, S.W., Washington, DC [...]
Posted in Government Gone Wild on Jul 13th, 2010
To the tune of $188,000 per year.
Posted in Government Gone Wild on Jul 6th, 2010
Coyote reminds us just who the stimulus stimulated:
Remember when the stimulus bill was all about “infrastructure” and “green energy?” Way back in January of 2009 (sorry I am in I-told-you-so mode) I observed how less than 6% of the first two years spending appeared to be related to infrastructure. It turns out that this is [...]
Posted in Government Gone Wild on Jun 13th, 2010
About my home state of New York …
Between 2001 and 2009, public school enrollment declined 4.6%, according State Education Department data. Yet more staff were hired, and the fastest growing category was non-teachers, up a staggering 26%. There’s room to trim without hurting children.
According to the Reason Foundation’s annual report on state highway systems, New [...]
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