It was an odd sense of déjà vu this week as someone who lived in Christchurch until recently. The earthquake was hugely destructive and distressing for many. Read more
The government ran roughshod over property rights in the Christchurch rebuild. The New Zealand Human Rights Commission’s report urging the government to include property rights in the Bill of Rights now seems especially timely. Read more
Once upon a time, in a previous life it now seems, I wrote a doctoral thesis on the law and economics of advertising regulation. One of the fun facts I still remember is a paradox in people’s attitudes towards advertising. Read more
The highly clichéd pop psychology definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different outcome. If we accept this meaning, then local government in New Zealand is just plain nuts, cuckoo, cray cray, whacko and doolally. Read more
According to most commentators, the election of Donald J. Trump signifies the end of the West, the end of the international post-War framework, or at least the end of the United States. Read more
As Game of Thrones fans will remember, while it’s tempting to see chaos as a pit, chaos can also be a ladder. As the latest season of America’s Game of Thrones reached a climax more shocking than the Red Wedding, New Zealand should look to potential opportunities. Read more
The issue of what to do with the 74,000 young New Zealanders who are not in employment, education or training (NEETs) is a tricky one. Labour correctly pointed out in its conference how difficult and despairing it can be for young people in this situation and what a waste this represents to society. Read more
Earlier this year I wrote that a Donald Trump presidency wouldn’t be that bad. Today I’m a whole lot less cheerful. Read more
When I was a poor grad student, I made a lot of use of credit cards. Not having to pay for up to about 40 days after a purchase was awfully helpful when budgeting around lumpy scholarship payments. Read more
Have we ever witnessed a stranger US election campaign? What started off looking like a bad joke has now become a possibility: Reality TV star and self-proclaimed business genius Donald Trump becoming the 45th US President. Read more
While recently in northern California researching the management of recreational fisheries, I recalled the common phrase, “Size isn’t important, unless you’re a fisherman.” This phrase came to mind in relation to the red abalone fishery, which is the most common and largest of seven abalone species along the northern California coastline. What really stands out in this fishery is the recent breakthrough in the way it is being managed. Read more
In an NBR article last week I wrote about scams in the form of public misinformation about economic inequality in New Zealand. The first one I mentioned was the assertion that inequality here has risen faster than in any other country “in recent years”. Read more
As a follow-up to The New Zealand Initiative's recently released report, What's the Catch?, Randall Bess is travelling overseas to research some of the different ways recreational fisheries are managed. In his overseas travels, he first visited the remote northern California coastline. Read more
If you are familiar with The Adventures of Asterix, you probably remember the beginning: “The year is 50 BC. Gaul is entirely occupied by the Romans. Read more
1. Don’t like capitalism? Read more