Category Archives: economics

the economic puzzles of rivers

New Scientist: Europe’s worst ever floods linked to poor land management: Engineers have channelled all the major rivers that flooded this month – draining wetlands, straightening meanders and cutting them off from their flood plains with high banks. The aim … Continue reading

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tall buildings

James Lileks says several right things about the WTC. It’s not cowardice to suggest that there might be difficulty renting the upper floors of two 110 story towers; I can imagine myself as someone looking for office space, standing in … Continue reading

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do as I suggest, not as I am constrained

Steven den Beste, in “An act of faith”, puts words in the mouth of an anonymous blogger: . . . I, myself, do not admit to holding those opinions to those around me because I’m afraid of the consequences. But I believe … Continue reading

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immortality for pessimists

Larry Niven wrote, somewhere or other, that if you live long enough you’re bound to get rich at least once. It occurs to me just now that, if you live long enough under an immortal dictatorship, sooner or later you’re … Continue reading

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unions piss me off

Saw a union picket today with a sign saying Catbert Corporation is Enron II. If you thought your employer was a house of cards, would you spend your time agitating to increase its labor costs, or look for a new … Continue reading

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don’t invest in Picasso

New Book Uses Statistical Methods to Analyze Avant-Garde Art The patterns emerging from Mr. Galenson’s crunched numbers suggested that the careers of avant-garde artists tended to fall into two categories, embodying distinct kinds of innovation. Some painters developed new techniques … Continue reading

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the government we pay for

Steven E. Landsburg writes in Slate of all places: Either a) the justices – having concluded that paying compensation would transform routine government activity into “a luxury few governments could afford” – are prepared to draw the logical conclusion that … Continue reading

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