1367: Antony Davies – Laws That Harm the Disabled

In 1990, the U.S. government enacted the Americans with Disabilities Act. This law attempted to protect the disabled in the labor market by prohibiting discriminatory behavior on the basis of disability. A law specifically designed to ensure that the disabled got a fair shake in the labor market instead resulted in decreased employment rates for the disabled.Download Print Quality (6144×7680) 492KB  |  Normal Quality (3072×3840) 255KB

1366: Antony Davies – Seat Belt Laws

Forty-nine states now mandate seat belt use and motor vehicle fatalities have decreased. But there is more to the story. As more drivers used seat belts, fatalities for pedestrians and cyclists increased. Why? As seat belt use rose, driving became safer. As driving became safer, the cost to drivers of being inattentive fell. And as the cost of being inattentive fell, drivers could afford to exercise less care. So as safety regulations make drivers safer, pedestrians and cyclists face greater risk. —Antony Davies, James R. HarriganDownload Print Quality (7680×4020) 213KB  |  Normal Quality (3840×2010) 121KB
Forty-nine states now mandate seat belt use and motor vehicle fatalities have decreased. But there is more to the story. As more drivers used seat belts, fatalities for pedestrians and cyclists increased. Why? As seat belt use rose, driving became safer. As driving became safer, the cost to drivers of being inattentive fell. And as the cost of being inattentive fell, drivers could afford to exercise less care. So as safety regulations make drivers safer, pedestrians and cyclists face greater risk. —Antony Davies, James R. HarriganDownload Print Quality (7680×7680) 337KB  |  Normal Quality (3840×3840) 310KB

Forty-nine states now mandate seat belt use and motor vehicle fatalities have decreased. But there is more to the story. As more drivers used seat belts, fatalities for pedestrians and cyclists increased. Why? As seat belt use rose, driving became safer. As driving became safer, the cost to drivers of being inattentive fell. And as the cost of being inattentive fell, drivers could afford to exercise less care. So as safety regulations make drivers safer, pedestrians and cyclists face greater risk. —Antony Davies, James R. Harrigan

1365: Antony Davies – Unintended Consequences

In Hanoi during the French colonial period there was a problem with too many rats. The French authorities offered a bounty for every rat killed but required only that people bring the rats’ tails as evidence. Hanoi was soon overrun by tailless rats. The people were simply catching the rats, cutting off their tails, and releasing them. Why? So those rats could procreate, creating more rats and more bounties. In the end, Hanoi had more rats after the bounty than before. Sometimes there are perverse outcomes and unintended consequences of a government policy. —Antony Davies, James R. HarriganDownload Print Quality (7680×4020) 214KB  |  Normal Quality (3840×2010) 124KB
In Hanoi during the French colonial period there was a problem with too many rats. The French authorities offered a bounty for every rat killed but required only that people bring the rats’ tails as evidence. Hanoi was soon overrun by tailless rats. The people were simply catching the rats, cutting off their tails, and releasing them. Why? So those rats could procreate, creating more rats and more bounties. In the end, Hanoi had more rats after the bounty than before. Sometimes there are perverse outcomes and unintended consequences of a government policy. —Antony Davies, James R. HarriganDownload Print Quality (7680×7680) 333KB  |  Normal Quality (3840×3840) 308KB

In Hanoi during the French colonial period there was a problem with too many rats. The French authorities offered a bounty for every rat killed but required only that people bring the rats’ tails as evidence. Hanoi was soon overrun by tailless rats. The people were simply catching the rats, cutting off their tails, and releasing them. Why? So those rats could procreate, creating more rats and more bounties. In the end, Hanoi had more rats after the bounty than before. Sometimes there are perverse outcomes and unintended consequences of a government policy. —Antony Davies, James R. Harrigan

1364: Antony Davies – Venezuelan Inflation

To address its cash crunch, the Venezuelan government printed money, which gave birth to rampant inflation. Depending on whom you ask, Venezuela’s annual inflation rate exceeded something between 60,000 percent and 200,000 percent in 2019. To put that in perspective, a product that cost one dollar in January 2019 would cost between $600 and $2,000 by the end of 2019. —Antony Davies, James R. HarriganDownload Print Quality (7680×4020) 226KB  |  Normal Quality (3840×2010) 122KB
To address its cash crunch, the Venezuelan government printed money, which gave birth to rampant inflation. Depending on whom you ask, Venezuela’s annual inflation rate exceeded something between 60,000 percent and 200,000 percent in 2019. To put that in perspective, a product that cost one dollar in January 2019 would cost between $600 and $2,000 by the end of 2019. —Antony Davies, James R. HarriganDownload Print Quality (7680×7680) 332KB  |  Normal Quality (3840×3840) 303KB

To address its cash crunch, the Venezuelan government printed money, which gave birth to rampant inflation. Depending on whom you ask, Venezuela’s annual inflation rate exceeded something between 60,000 percent and 200,000 percent in 2019. To put that in perspective, a product that cost one dollar in January 2019 would cost between $600 and $2,000 by the end of 2019. —Antony Davies, James R. Harrigan

1363: Antony Davies – Spontaneous Order

In Nicaragua where sign language didn’t exist, in 1981, a new school for the deaf opened. Fifty deaf students enrolled during the school’s first year, and a curious thing happened: they developed their own version of sign language. No one taught them this; they simply began assigning signs and gestures to the things in their environment, and slowly a language emerged, complete with verb tenses and the like, to rival any other language. Spontaneous orders are systems that develop organically. They aren’t designed by a coercive authority. They emerge through countless human interactions undertaken over time. —Antony Davies, James R. HarriganDownload Print Quality (7680×4020) 214KB  |  Normal Quality (3840×2010) 123KB
In Nicaragua where sign language didn’t exist, in 1981, a new school for the deaf opened. Fifty deaf students enrolled during the school’s first year, and a curious thing happened: they developed their own version of sign language. No one taught them this; they simply began assigning signs and gestures to the things in their environment, and slowly a language emerged, complete with verb tenses and the like, to rival any other language. Spontaneous orders are systems that develop organically. They aren’t designed by a coercive authority. They emerge through countless human interactions undertaken over time. —Antony Davies, James R. HarriganDownload Print Quality (7680×7680) 362KB  |  Normal Quality (3840×3840) 335KB

In Nicaragua where sign language didn’t exist, in 1981, a new school for the deaf opened. Fifty deaf students enrolled during the school’s first year, and a curious thing happened: they developed their own version of sign language. No one taught them this; they simply began assigning signs and gestures to the things in their environment, and slowly a language emerged, complete with verb tenses and the like, to rival any other language. Spontaneous orders are systems that develop organically. They aren’t designed by a coercive authority. They emerge through countless human interactions undertaken over time. —Antony Davies, James R. Harrigan