I often told my students that Hayek’s “The Use of Knowledge in Society” published in the American Economic Review in 1945 remains the most insightful economic article ever published. I read it once a year and always learn. Anyone who understands it well knows more about the economy and society than does the average Ph.D. […]

This essay originally appeared as a blog post on TheAtlantic.com on May 22, 2012. Thanks to Megan (McArdle) for inviting me to spend some time over here.  As she mentioned, much of my work focuses on environmental law and policy. I also do a fair amount on “administrative law” more generally (aka the law governing administrative […]

In Priceless: Curing the Healthcare Crisis, Dr. John Goodman takes the Affordable Care Act to task, rejects the Obama Administration’s vision, and offers a no-nonsense approach to health care reform. Arguing that the United States should create a market for sick people, in which health plans vigorously compete to solve the problems of diabetics, asthmatics, […]

Our nation is rapidly approaching a point from which there’s little chance to avoid a financial collapse. The heart of our problem can be seen as a tragedy of the commons. That’s a set of circumstances when something is commonly owned and individuals acting rationally in their own self-interest produce a set of results that’s […]

David Parker has done a commendable job lately of covering the impact of big money in the Tester/Rehberg race. I fully expect a variation of Gresham’s law to apply as negative ads funded by outside groups drive away a civil discussion on issues important to Montana and the west. Here is one version of how […]

This summer FREE is hosting two seminars for seminary professors, other academics involved with religion, and federal judges. The July program will examine environmental and social justice and will include an excursion to Butte, America. What can we learn about booms, busts, and revitalization from the Butte experience? What does and can religion contribute during […]

Here is a true, empirical, generalization about people’s understanding of political economy: when well intended, smart, honest, and alert individuals observe government’s operation over time, they eventually separate hopes for reform from expectations regarding outcomes. They develop an intuitive understanding of Public Choice economics.  Here’s what they often see: when government expands beyond the limited […]

FREE has the great good fortune to work with many of America’s most perceptive scholars. I find their insights most helpful when grappling with complex and important policy issues. Health care reform is a prime example. It’s remarkably complex and important to all. It also fosters opportunistic and dishonest behavior. Disentangling and understanding Obamacare is […]