It is often argued that government rule enforcement is necessary for the development of a stock market (Glaeser, Johnson, & Shleifer, 2001). Work by Boot, Stuart, and Thakor (1993), Klein and Leffler (1981), and Telser (1980), however, suggests that repeated interaction and reputation can create...

This article provides a critical analysis of Frye (2000) and existing theories of self-governance. Following up on the recent studies by Stringham (2002, 2003), we focus our attention on the emergence of financial markets for several reasons. The common perception is that complicated financial...

After Czech voucher privatization many companies simply ignored the interests of their shareholders. The government has since increased the amount of regulation, but they have failed to establish significant investor confidence. This article offers some explanations of why their legal centric...

This Article provides a detailed discussion of the economics of inclusionary zoning and finds that these lawyers' "economic" defense of inclusionary zoning is severely flawed. The Article is organized as follows: Part II gives a background on inclusionary zoning, such as where it is practiced...

Does economics justify restricting alcohol consumption? A new line of research concludes that alcohol involves significant social costs and that various restrictions would lead to net social gains. This article focuses on Levy and Miller (1995), who conduct a cost-benefit analysis of...

A number of theorists assume that drinking has harmful economic effects, but data show that drinking and earnings are positively correlated. We hypothesize that drinking leads to higher earnings by increasing social capital. If drinkers have larger social networks, their earnings should...

How much of economic theory can be derived using pure logic and how much of it depends on empirical facts? In a provocative article, Hülsmann (2003) criticizes Mises and Rothbard for relying on empirical assumptions, ceteris paribus claims, and thought experiments in their analysis. Instead,...

The recent article by Daley et al. advocates large increases in alcohol taxes claiming both public health benefits from reduced consumption and that almost all of the cost would be borne by high-risk drinkers. The authors rely on the assumption that the majority of drinkers impose external costs...

Murray Rothbard (1977) maintained that libertarian social change requires a libertarian cadre both committed to principle and willing to engage others to help advance the cause. This article applies this theory to academia and highlights the contribution of a professor who best exemplifies what...

Online merchants are exposed to serious threats of fraud, which has the potential to cripple electronic commerce. Classical liberals such as Epstein and North believe that markets require prohibitions against fraud and that government can solve the problem. Although the classical-liberal...