The Fed Will Not Meet Its Inflation Target in 2024
Thursday May 16, 2024 | Randall G. Holcombe

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the year-over-year inflation rate in April 2024 was 3.4%, which has caused some to be optimistic that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will lower interest rates later this year. I won’t guess what the Fed might do, but I’m pretty confident the Fed will not achieve its 2% inflation target in 2024. (more…)

Proposed California Law to Protect Neurorights?
Tuesday May 14, 2024 | Jonathan Hofer

The California Senate is in the early stages of deliberating Senate Bill 1223, introduced by Josh Becker (D-District 13). The bill aims to classify “neural data” as “sensitive information” under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). It is one of the first legislative attempts to codify “neurorights” in the United States and among the first in the world. (more…)

Is Europe Headed Towards the Extreme Right?
Tuesday May 14, 2024 | Alvaro Vargas Llosa

While it is certain that the far right (by which I mean the nationalist, protectionist, Eurosceptic right) will make headway in the elections to the Strasbourg-based European parliament that will take place in early June in 27 countries, it is far less likely that they will exercise the influence that the media and some of their rivals think—or claim they believe. (more…)

California High-Speed Rail Celebrates Completing Bridge to Nowhere
Friday May 10, 2024 | Craig Eyermann

If critics wanted proof California’s bullet train is a zombie project, they got it straight from California’s High-Speed Rail’s publicity department last week. (more…)

Canadian Bill C-63 Creates a Kangaroo Court
Tuesday May 7, 2024 | Francis Crescia

In Canada, Big Brother wants control of how citizens think and speak. Tragically, this Orwellian nightmare is becoming a reality. The government’s trilogy of censorship bills—Bill C-11 empowered the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission to tell us what to watch, Bill C-18 extorted millions from big tech to help fund legacy media, and the recently introduced On-Line Harms Act Bill C-63 will impose authoritarian censorship laws the likes of which are found in places like Iran or China. (more…)

The Ratchet Effect on the Fed’s Balance Sheet
Monday May 6, 2024 | Paul Mueller

Pay no attention to the balance sheet behind the curtain. (more…)

The FDA Is Not a Referee
Friday May 3, 2024 | Raymond J. March

Last October, the Food and Drug Administration began surveying ground cinnamon products. By November, the agency identified elevated levels of lead and chromium in applesauce pouches across several producers. Suspecting the worst, the FDA mandated recalls and began investigating whether lead was intentionally added to these products.  (more…)