Comments on: Read These Articles!

By: Foster Boondoggle

Foster Boondoggle — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 20:09:29 +0000

“[B]eware of perennial conservative arguments that tack the word “jobs” on the end.”

I’ve come up with a guide to understanding “job-killing regulations” arguments. Imagine a society where armed robbery is legal, so anyone who can afford it hires bodyguards for protection – and of course others make their livings as armed robbers. Then a law is proposed to make armed robbery illegal. Now see if you could substitute this proposal for whatever regulation is being used as the job-killer du jour. Instead of “this new law will destroy the jobs of coal miners and steam boiler makers” you’ve got “this new law will destroy the jobs of bodyguards and armed robbers”. I find it clarifies the issue.

* Pollution from coal burning: check.
* Clean water laws: check.
* Dodd-Frank: check.

By: save_the_rustbelt

save_the_rustbelt — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 16:26:36 +0000

Government regulators often lack some important characteristics:

1. any modicum of common sense

2. any sense of cost-benefit

3. consistency in their own interpretations and enforcement actions

And then there is the hidden agenda, most regulatory law is (intentionally) a welfare program for lawyers, who of course dominate Congress.

By: Phillip

Phillip — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 12:56:46 +0000

Jared,

Remember Rahm Emmanuel’s line – “never waste a crisis.”

Don’t you think the business lobby has just this thing in mind. It’s obvious that a lack of demand is the biggest hindrance to small business, but convincing enough politicians that it’s regulations will get them some friendly legislation.

Even democrats like Harold Ford Jr buy into this stuff.