When advocates of antitrust legislation discuss reigning in large technology companies such as Apple, Facebook, or Google, they often do not fully consider the implications more stringent antitrust legislation will have on cybersecurity and the protection of consumer data. Proposals to break up large technology companies would be profoundly damaging to consumer privacy and cybersecurity […]
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The Big Problem with Price Controls: Scarcity
One of the most pressing problems facing Americans and the U.S. healthcare system is the affordability of prescription drugs. An estimated 58 million Americans face medication insecurity and have “been unable to afford prescribed drugs at least once in the last 12 months.” The Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development claimed that per capita, Americans pay $1,220 per year […]
Inside Sources: Don’t Ban Smoke-Free Nicotine Products
When Philip Morris International (PMI) reacted to the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval of a modified risk tobacco product marketing order for its proprietary IQOS heat-not-burn product, it heralded it as a broader public health victory. The FDA confirmed that IQOS eliminates a traditional cigarette’s burning characteristics by heating the tobacco sticks to a vapor aerosol. This product is said […]
Inside Sources: California’s Crystal Ball on the Gig Economy
The recent passage of Assembly Bill 5 in California, provides a crystal ball that reveals the real economic damage that crackdowns on the gig economy can cause for both employers and employees by imposing extra hiring costs. This op-ed is available in Inside Sources.
Real Clear Policy: The War on Big Tech Threatens Consumer Welfare
Some policymakers are seeking to expand antitrust laws to target big tech. If this expansion is not rooted in sound economic analysis, as the current laws are, who’s to say when a company is too large and powerful? Would the effort to break up or rein in big companies stretch beyond online platforms to more […]
Don’t Let Anti-‘Big Tech’ Sentiment Overturn Time-Tested Antitrust Standards
It is reasonable to question whether the consumer welfare standard has been adequately applied to Big Tech companies, and whether some of their practices may unfairly handicap potential competitors — though, for now, the evidence for that charge is thin. What is not productive is to advocate for a return to the “big is bad” […]
The Economic Standard: Debunking “Big is Bad” — The Economics of Big Tech
Though calls to break up “Big Tech” — Amazon, Apple, Google, and Facebook — have intensified over the last few years, the logic behind the movement is as tenuous as ever. From the perspective of consumer welfare, the standard that has guided competition policy in the U.S. for nearly half a century, there’s good reason to think […]
Real Clear Policy: Postmaster General is Delivering Important Postal Fixes
When Postmaster General (PMG) Louis DeJoy took the helm of the United States Postal Service in May, he inherited a dismal situation and an extensive list of problems to solve after years of curious decision-making by management and ongoing failures to correct the agency’s troubling financial and quality performance. Prospects for the Postal Service’s independent […]
Inside Sources: Biden-Harris Ticket Risks Repeating Solyndra
With Senator Kamala Harris now on the ticket, Democratic nominee Joe Biden is angling to enhance his environmental credentials ahead of the November presidential election. The Biden campaign’s ambitious clean energy plan plays no small role in this ongoing effort. But in an unfortunate coincidence, in recent weeks taxpayers have learned that they are still paying for the […]
San Francisco Needs to Admit it Was Wrong About Vaping
San Francisco cares about your health — so much so that they outright banned the sale of e-cigarettes in 2020. As usual for SF, the ultra-progressive city sought to be a leader in the fight against electronic cigarettes, issuing one of the most stringent measures taken in the U.S. However, a recent study shows that the measure was probably […]