New Zealand is not a cheap place to live – for a lot of reasons. We’re far from a lot of major markets, so shipping goods here can be expensive. Read more

Scientific truth is not established by poll results, but scientists’ consensus on scientific issues can tell us a lot. It does not tell us what optimal policy should be – that depends on costs and benefits. Read more

The Christchurch Press has more details on 'courtsiding' at the Cricket World Cup. They're describing the folks placing bets based on up-to-date information at the game, as opposed to those on 15-second TV delay, as "betting cheats". Read more

It turns out that you can both agree with Local Government New Zealand that we need to change how local government is financed, and with the Taxpayers’ Union that a lot of local governments could be more efficient. I think we can manage to hit both targets with one instrument in this case: fixing how local government is financed can help to make local government more efficient. Read more

There’s a lot to like in Local Government New Zealand’s report on local government finances. The report gets one very important thing right: It’s time that central government moved to tie local government finances more closely to local government performance to encourage development. Read more

It turns out that you can both agree with Local Government New Zealand that we need to change how local government is financed, and with the Taxpayers’ Union that a lot of local governments could be more efficient. I think we can manage to hit both targets with one instrument in this case: fixing how local government is financed can help to make local government more efficient. Read more

City planners have done terrible things to housing affordability. While improving the RMA is an important step in stemming the madness, it’s only a first step. Read more

People have a bad habit of wanting to tell stories about random low-probability events. Whether it's a few dog attacks that happened in the same couple of weeks, or a blip in youth drinking rates, people want to know why. Read more

Oh, the perils of the silly season. If your office is typical, you’re in a mad dash trying to finish everything that needs to be done before Christmas. Read more

America got a little bit crazier this week. I’m not talking about the Ferguson riots, round two, which make me ever-grateful that New Zealand maintains an unarmed constabulary. Read more

A spending spree after an unexpected Christmas bonus is something we can all understand. Maybe it isn’t the best way of planning your finances, but it isn’t going to really do any harm. Read more

In 2009, I wrote a piece on the social costs of drugs for NORML; it appeared in their NORML News magazine. The police later sought to have several issues of NORML News deemed Objectionable; some articles described hashish production methods. Read more

When Gordon Tullock submitted his article, The Welfare Costs of Tariffs, Monopoly and Theft, to the top journal in economics, The American Economic Review, John Gurley, then Editor, rejected it, saying “You will no doubt note that the referee neglects your point regarding the amount of real resources devoted to establishing, promoting, destroying monopolises, etc. However, I have noted it and, while I think it is certainly valid, it does not appear significant (as a theoretical contribution).” Tullock’s contribution was eventually published in 1967 in the rather less prestigious Western Economic Journal. Read more