When one spends any time criticizing the U.S. patent system or those who profit from it while offering dubious benefits to the consumer, one inevitably runs up against a particularly annoying rhetorical tactic employed by those same profiteers. “How can…
There’s a concept in business called the “decoy effect,” whereby crafty marketers present an unfavorable option to manipulate consumers toward a more profitable one. The classic business-school example is movie theaters providing three sizes of popcorn: the price of the…
The U.S. trade deficit in goods and services increased to $54.9 billion in August, up from $54.0 billion in July. That’s because imports grew more than exports overall. While President Donald Trump will see this higher trade deficit as a…
Our domestic oil industry seems to have found itself in uncertain times. It’s not a price shock like mid-2014 to early 2016 or even a slide like that of last winter. Operational challenges are being encountered. Investors are done with financing growth and want…
There are many bad ideas flying around right now in Congress. The recent proposal by Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., to give some taxpayers a rebate check funded with the tariff loot is one of those ideas. It’s not only bad…
The Federal Reserve Bank (the Fed) has a policy to create and sustain 2-percent inflation in America on an annual basis. J. P. Morgan would be chagrined to know that he helped create a central bank that promotes inflation. The…
Stan Veuger of the American Enterprise Institute recently complained on Twitter that those who cared about cronyism when Barack Obama was president are suddenly very quiet about President Donald Trump’s bailout of farmers. There is some truth to his complaint….
The corporate world, perceived by social activists as the belly of the capitalist beast, might have been expected to be the most difficult for left-wing activists to tame. On the contrary, it has been a soft target. On August 20, the Wall…
On the campaign trail, candidate Donald Trump said that, if elected, “We’re going to win so much. You’re going to get tired of winning. You’re going to say, ‘Please Mr. President, I have a headache. Please, don’t win so much.’”…