Sound Economics

Click here for Part I Click here for Part II Part III: ANARCHY To quote Michael Malice, “The black flag of anarchy comes in many colors” and also in his summation anarchy can be summarized by the simple statement that “you don’t speak for me”. The differing flavors of anarchy represent differing economic approaches in a governance that requires individual explicit consent. Anarchism of a socialist bent has been part and parcel of the modern anarchist movement since its rebirth in the early to mid 1800’s. This movement began in earnest in the 1880’s with the arrival of Yiddish speaking Continue reading Public vs Private Ownership of Government: A survey of Dangerous Ideas in Three Parts (Part III)→

            . Intellectual vices are commonly defined as personal attitudes or character traits that impede effective inquiry. In recent years, there has been increased recognition of the presence and proliferation of such vices globally in academia; however, discussion has been limited regarding the way in which the academic institution actively produces this result in part by incentivizing arrogant attitudes. Arrogance as a vice is defined by Roberts as “a disposition to infer illicit entitlement from a supposition of one’s superiority, and to think, feel, and act upon that claim” (2003, p. 243). Intellectual arrogance is specifically when the premise of Continue reading Epistemic Externalities: The Academic “Marketplace” Produces Intellectual Arrogance→

Tropical houseplants have increased in popularity as a U.S consumer good, with houseplant sales increasing by 50% simply in the last three years. Potting media is a necessary, complementary good to houseplants: any houseplant owner knows that having some potting soil on hand enables you to repot your growing plants at a moment’s notice, or refresh soil that has been depleted of its nutrients. Many indoor plants, such as Philodendron, Epipremnum, and Monstera, are epiphytic, which means that they grow best on other plants, such as trees. Their roots have evolved to grow on bark amidst the open-air; and thus, Continue reading Coconut Derived Potting Media Feeds Horticulture Industry Demand for a Sustainable Alternative, But at What Ecological Cost?→

Massive dormitories are the way of the future, Or at least Charlie Munger thinks so. Charlie Munger is billionaire in America who made his money working for Warren Buffet with investments. But this naturally begs the question, what is a billionaire doing designing college dorms? It boils down to supply and demand. For years, Mr. Munger has listened to family members complaining about sharing dorm rooms with annoying roommates. On most college campuses, the demand for single rooms is much greater than the supply, and this issue has only been emphasized due to the housing restrictions that have come with Continue reading The Megadorm→

Click here to read Part I PART II: Monarchy The 20th century was a bad time for Monarchies and Monarchs. One of the myriad results of the “War to end all Wars” was the dissolution of many European monarchies, and the establishment of more democratic forms of governance. “From the viewpoint of economic theory, the end of WWI can be identified as the point in time at which private government ownership was completely replaced by public government ownership, and whence a systematic tendency toward increased exploitation — government growth — and rising degrees of social time preference — present-orientedness — Continue reading Public vs Private vs Individual Ownership of Government: A Survey of Dangerous Ideas in Three parts. (Part II)→

PART IDemocracy (Public Ownership) What would happen if we applied basic economic principles to various forms of governance in order to ascertain the most efficacious and stable governmental system? Where would democracy stand? Would the undoing of the old order brought about by the Great War still be considered an advance, or in hindsight would it perhaps be considered a mistake? Democracy has historically been given short shrift as a form of government by many political philosophers throughout history. To summarize the Greek (birthplace of democracy) thoughts on democracy let us turn to two quotes from Plato: “Tyranny naturally arises Continue reading Public vs Private vs Individual Ownership of Government: A Survey of Dangerous Ideas in Three parts. (Part I)→

Image sourced from the Today Show. Do you shop in bulk? Which foods do you buy in bulk? Why? The bulk foods aisle can be an unassuming section of the grocery store, but there is plenty to unpack when discussing these unpackaged grocery wares. “Buying in bulk” originated within the 1970’s co-op movement but has since been co-opted by major supermarket chains. At its best, the bulk aisle is a place for consumers to access food products at a reduced price, without the added value of brand-names, packaging, and extraneous supply chain costs. The original ideologies promoted by bulk foods Continue reading Unpacking Unpackaged Food: Podcast on Modern Consumption of Bulk Foods→

For those unaware, microtransactions are simply defined as a small transaction made online. One industry that utilizes this practice most notably is the gaming industry. Microtransactions in the gaming industry began as a much less prominent concept, that seems to have changed recently. Microtransactions in gaming originated when online games featured the ability to buy skins to change the appearance of characters. These were featured in well-known competitive titles that already had a price of $60 on release, and microtransactions only made up a small portion of profits. However, things began to really accelerate when mobile games gave their take Continue reading The developments of microtransactions in gaming→

It’s been generally assumed that a large majority of layoffs in 2020 were caused by the economic strain brought on by covid-19 outbreak. However, new data suggests otherwise; big businesses experienced a very different 2020 from most of America. Despite larger companies rolling out layoffs at a higher rate than smaller companies, 45 of the 50 biggest companies in America turned a profit in 2020. While small businesses have lost an average of 12% income loss in 2020, the larger corporations included in this study showed that they had a 2% growth in profits last year. Even companies that previously Continue reading The surprisingly good status of America’s largest companies in 2021→

Colonization and its tools violently disrupt traditional food systems for many Native American communities. Data collected between 2000 and 2010 by the United States Department of Agriculture place the average food insecurity rate at 25 percent for Native Americans and Alaska Natives. To understand the availability of food and its household-level barriers, an explanation of the food price index in Native reservations is necessary. As part of a 12-month study, the First Nations Development Institute collected monthly prices on food products in 40 reservations with the help of several community members. This study designed a hypothetical basket of goods including Continue reading Food Price Index in Native American Reservations, Explained→