The number of honey-producing bee colonies is higher than it has been in 20 years, according to the newest USDA data. After consistent decline from the late 1980s to the early 2000s, there has been a recent rise in the number of colonies due to federal regulations promoting bee health —scratch that—beekeepers responding to changing prices of
Dan Price, the CEO of Gravity Payments, took a $930,000 pay cut to raise the minimum salary of his employees to $70,000. The plan was announced in April 2015, and set to be completed over the course of three years. Both his employees (especially the ones with a larger pay increase) and proponents of income equality celebrated the move. It garnered
Anti-market and pro-socialist rhetoric is surging in headlines (see also here , here , and here ) and popping up more and more on social media feeds . Much of the time, these opponents of markets can’t tell the difference between state-sponsored organizations like the International Monetary Fund and actual markets. But, that doesn’t matter because
One of the great things about economics is that it is devoid of all mysticism. Every person, good, service, and dollar is treated equally — nothing is special or above the rules. There’s nothing about the supply of or demand for apples that is categorically different from that of oranges. Since every good or service demanded by anybody is scarce,
Bill Gates has called for a “robot tax” to help maintain government tax revenue when human laborers are let go because a “robot comes in to do the same thing.” He seems to be following the same line of argument that many make for a universal basic income: when a worker in a $50,000/year job is replaced by some automated process and then finds a
Originally published December 14, 2016. Is Christmas bad for the economy? Do gifts destroy value? Are they a drag on the economy, as many economists suggest? In “The economist’s guide to gift-giving” at FT , Tim Harford collects the research of these economists who say that “Gifts typically destroy value. The total deadweight loss of Christmas in
Last week, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform approved a bill submitted by Thomas Massie (R-KY) to allow Congress to audit the Federal Reserve. The bill was originally introduced by Ron Paul in 2009 and was passed in the House twice (2012 and 2014), but failed to pass in the Senate. The Obama administration, Fed chair Bernanke,
Last week, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform approved a bill submitted by Thomas Massie (R-KY) to allow Congress to audit the Federal Reserve. The bill was originally introduced by Ron Paul in 2009 and was passed in the House twice (2012 and 2014), but failed to pass in the Senate. The Obama administration, Fed chair Bernanke,
Xanthe Pajarillo has petitioned her city council to somehow get the local McDonald’s restaurants to offer the McRib sandwich. The McRib features ground pork shaped like four ribs and McDonald’s signature barbecue sauce. Some people love it. Others hate it. Xanthe is in the “ loves it “ crowd. The sandwich is even a part of her family’s
The New York Fed’s most recent household debt report showed ballooning debt and delinquency in student and auto loans. Total household debt has just about reached its previous late-2008 high of over $12.5 trillion. You’ll notice that housing debt (blue) has not increased much since its 2013 low, meaning that the increases in total debt have mostly
What is the Mises Institute?
The Mises Institute is a non-profit organization that exists to promote teaching and research in the Austrian School of economics, individual freedom, honest history, and international peace, in the tradition of Ludwig von Mises and Murray N. Rothbard.
Non-political, non-partisan, and non-PC, we advocate a radical shift in the intellectual climate, away from statism and toward a private property order. We believe that our foundational ideas are of permanent value, and oppose all efforts at compromise, sellout, and amalgamation of these ideas with fashionable political, cultural, and social doctrines inimical to their spirit.
