Freedomnomics

Last updated
Freedomnomics: Why the Free Market Works and Other Half-Baked Theories Don't
Freedomnomics-book.JPG
Hardcover edition
Author John R. Lott
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Genre Non-fiction
Publisher Regnery Publishing
Publication date
June 25, 2007
Media type Hardcover
ISBN 978-1-59698-506-3
OCLC 87758440
330.12/2 22
LC Class HB95 .L68 2007
Preceded by The Bias Against Guns  

Freedomnomics: Why the Free Market Works and Other Half-Baked Theories Don't is a book by writer and public policy researcher John R. Lott, Jr., author of previous works More Guns, Less Crime and The Bias Against Guns . Freedomnomics takes an economic look at the effects of the free market, and presents some arguments against those found in Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner. [1] [2] The publications The American and National Review ran positive reviews, with critic Robert VerBruggen stating that Lott "renders lots of charts, graphs and statistical analysis into clear, uncomplicated conversation." [3] [4]

Contents

In the book, Lott argues that right-to-carry laws in the U.S. have contributed to reduced rates of gun violence, that the public availability of abortion causes a rise of illegitimacy, and that female suffrage has led to government growth, among other viewpoints. [3] Lott generally takes a conservative and libertarian perspective. [4]

Background

Lott had previously sued Freakonomics co-author Steven Levitt for libel, based on Levitt's statement that other researchers "haven’t been able to replicate" Lott's controversial studies that find that gun deaths decline after concealed-carry laws are put into effect. A judge dismissed Lott's complaint. [3] [5]

Readings in Applied Microeconomics: The Power of the Market, a work edited by Craig Newmark and published by the Taylor & Francis Group, later excerpted sections from Freedomnomics in 2009. [6]

Topics

Academia

In a discussion of incentives, Lott refers to an event at Montana State University when the state proposed to abolish property taxes. Lott asserts that University professors knew that ending the tax was a good economic policy, but opposed the proposed law because it had the potential to reduce government funding to their University. [7]

Gas prices

Lott argues that oil and gas companies have incentives to stabilize the prices of gas and that such stability would benefit consumers in the long run. He asserts that the increases in gas prices during Hurricane Katrina actually helped mitigate the adverse impacts of the hurricane. He says that if government price controls, like those of the 1970s, had been enacted, they would have made life much harder for the victims. [8]

Drug prices

Lott asserts that Americans pay more for medications than other countries and that the additional expense paid by Americans is used to fund the research necessary to invent those drugs. If Americans did not pay high prices for drugs, he claims, then no new drugs would be created. Lott asserts that government price controls on drugs would destroy medical innovation, not only for the United States, but also for other countries who are dependent on the United States for new drugs. [9]

Used car vs. new car prices

Lott argues against the widely held belief that a new car loses 15–25% of its value as soon as it leaves the new car dealer's lot. He cites published estimates of new and certified used car prices [4] using manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP); Kelley Blue Book prices; and Yahoo! Auto Certified Used prices for 55 certified used cars (15 with less than 5,000 miles and 40 with about 15,000 miles). A few of the cars with less than 5,000 miles were actually worth more than MSRP. [10]

Campaign finance reform

Lott claims that laws which limit money donated to politicians gives an advantage to incumbents. He also asserts that these laws redirect money from politicians to political action committees, thereby increasing the occurrence of negative campaigning. [11]

Reputation

Lott makes an argument that reputations are an important, and often overlooked, asset in the economy. He gives examples of how hurt reputations can be more damaging than penalties imposed by law. [11]

Professional licensing

Lott asserts that professional licensing prevents the highest quality entrants from entering professions from barbering to practicing law. He points out that even though he has been a university professor for many years, he is not legally able to teach at public high schools in most states because of government regulations. [12]

Crime

Lott discusses the economics behind the changing levels of crime across the United States. He asserts that affirmative action in police hiring has caused an increase in crime and argues that the death penalty, citizens with concealed weapons carry permits have worked to decrease crime. He also writes that gun control regulations have had little effect on the crime rate. [13]

Women's suffrage

Lott states that women's suffrage has led to an increase in the size and scope of government in the US, and that states that gave women the vote increased spending afterwards compared to others. [3]

Voting

Lott discusses factors that he believes affect voter turnout and voter fraud in the United States. These include older examples such as the poll tax, secret ballots, and literacy tests and recent examples such as voting machines, felony voting, the 2000 Florida vote, public schools and alleged bias in the media. [14]

Reviews

Robert VerBruggen, an assistant editor at The Washington Times , praised the book by stating that it "entertains, educates and argues forcefully." He referred to Lott as "a great writer, especially for the general public" and remarked that Lott's work "renders lots of charts, graphs and statistical analysis into clear, uncomplicated conversation." He also wrote, "Scholar wars may seem petty at times, but this book shows they lead to some worthwhile endeavors." [3]

Academic Michael New, writing in the National Review, ran a supportive review that read "Lott successfully engages a number of current political debates and succeeds in making a number of cogent and well researched arguments in favor of free markets." [4]

See also

Related Research Articles

Victimless crime Concept in criminology

A victimless crime is an illegal act that typically either directly involves only the perpetrator or occurs between consenting adults. Because it is consensual in nature, whether there involves a victim is a matter of debate. Definitions of victimless crimes vary in different parts of the world and different law systems, but usually include possession of any illegal contraband, recreational drug use, prostitution and prohibited sexual behavior between consenting adults, assisted suicide, and smuggling among other similar infractions.

Broken windows theory Criminological theory

The broken windows theory is a criminological theory that states that visible signs of crime, anti-social behavior, and civil disorder create an urban environment that encourages further crime and disorder, including serious crimes. The theory suggests that policing methods that target minor crimes such as vandalism, loitering, public drinking, jaywalking, and fare evasion help to create an atmosphere of order and lawfulness.

John Lott American economist, political commentator, and gun rights advocate

John Richard Lott Jr. is an American economist, political commentator, and gun rights advocate. Lott was formerly employed at various academic institutions and at the American Enterprise Institute conservative think tank. He is former president of the Crime Prevention Research Center, a nonprofit he founded in 2013. He worked in the Office of Justice Programs within the U.S. Department of Justice under the Donald Trump administration from October 2020 to January 2021. Lott holds a Ph.D. in economics from UCLA.

<i>More Guns, Less Crime</i> 1998 non-fiction book by John Lott

More Guns, Less Crime is a book by John R. Lott Jr. that says violent crime rates go down when states pass "shall issue" concealed carry laws. He presents the results of his statistical analysis of crime data for every county in the United States during 29 years from 1977 to 2005. Each edition of the book was refereed by the University of Chicago Press. The book examines city, county and state level data from the entire United States and measures the impact of 13 different types of gun control laws on crime rates. The book expands on an earlier study published in 1997 by Lott and his co-author David Mustard in The Journal of Legal Studies and by Lott and his co-author John Whitley in The Journal of Law and Economics, October 2001.

List price Price that the manufacturer recommends for a retailer to charge

The list price, also known as the manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP), or the recommended retail price (RRP), or the suggested retail price (SRP) of a product is the price at which its manufacturer notionally recommends that a retailer sell the product.

<i>The Bias Against Guns</i> 2003 non-fiction book by John Lott

The Bias Against Guns: Why Almost Everything You've Heard About Gun Control Is Wrong is a book by John Lott, following up on his controversial More Guns, Less Crime. It is intended to reach a broader audience than its highly technical predecessor. Lott explores what he sees as misconceptions about gun ownership, including the practice of carrying concealed weapons.

The effect of legalized abortion on crime is a controversial hypothesis about the reduction in crime in the decades following the legalization of abortion. Proponents argue that the availability of abortion resulted in fewer births of children at the highest risk of committing crime. The earliest research suggesting such an effect was a 1966 study in Sweden. In 2001, Steven Levitt of the University of Chicago and John Donohue of Yale University argued, citing their research and earlier studies, that children who are unwanted or whose parents cannot support them are likelier to become criminals. This idea was further popularized by its inclusion in the book Freakonomics, which Levitt co-wrote.

Steven Levitt American economist

Steven David Levitt is an American economist and co-author of the best-selling book Freakonomics and its sequels. Levitt was the winner of the 2003 John Bates Clark Medal for his work in the field of crime, and is currently the William B. Ogden Distinguished Service Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago as well as the Faculty Director and Co-Founder of the Center for Radical Innovation for Social Change at the University of Chicago which incubates the Data Science for Everyone coalition. He was co-editor of the Journal of Political Economy published by the University of Chicago Press until December 2007. In 2009, Levitt co-founded TGG Group, a business and philanthropy consulting company. He was chosen as one of Time magazine's "100 People Who Shape Our World" in 2006. A 2011 survey of economics professors named Levitt their fourth favorite living economist under the age of 60, after Paul Krugman, Greg Mankiw and Daron Acemoglu.

<i>Freakonomics</i> Non-fiction book by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything is the debut non-fiction book by University of Chicago economist Steven Levitt and New York Times journalist Stephen J. Dubner. Published on April 12, 2005, by William Morrow, the book has been described as melding pop culture with economics. By late 2009, the book had sold over 4 million copies worldwide. Based on the success of the original book, Levitt and Dubner have grown the Freakonomics brand into a multi-media franchise, with a sequel book, a feature film, a regular radio segment on National Public Radio, and a weekly blog.

Public-order crime Type of crime; running contrary to social order

In criminology, public-order crime is defined by Siegel (2004) as "crime which involves acts that interfere with the operations of society and the ability of people to function efficiently", i.e., it is behaviour that has been labelled criminal because it is contrary to shared norms, social values, and customs. Robertson (1989:123) maintains a crime is nothing more than "an act that contravenes a law". Generally speaking, deviancy is criminalized when it is too disruptive and has proved uncontrollable through informal sanctions.

Crack epidemic in the United States Drug epidemic in the 1980s and 90s

The crack epidemic is a surge of crack cocaine use in major cities across the United States, predominantly in the late 1980s and the 1990s. This resulted in a number of social consequences, such as increasing crime and violence in American inner city neighborhoods, as well as a resulting backlash in the form of tough on crime policies.

<i>The Undercover Economist</i> Book by Tim Harford

The Undercover Economist (ISBN 0-19-518977-9) (ISBN 0345494016) is a book by Tim Harford published in 2005 by Little, Brown.

<i>The Market for Liberty</i> Book by Morris Tannehill

The Market for Liberty is an anarcho-capitalist book written by Linda and Morris Tannehill, which according to Karl Hess has become "something of a classic." It was preceded by the self-published Liberty via the Market in 1969. Mary Ruwart credits the Tannehill's book with winning her over to anarcho-capitalism. Doug Casey was also converted to anarcho-capitalism after reading the book at the behest of Jarret Wollstein. According to the Ludwig von Mises Institute, it was written just following a period of intense study of the writings of both Ayn Rand and Murray Rothbard. It was the first significant anarcho-capitalist work to hit the libertarian movement, coming into print a year before Rothbard's Power and Market although Rothbard's book had been written earlier.

Sudhir Venkatesh

Sudhir Alladi Venkatesh is an American sociologist and urban ethnographer. He is William B. Ransford Professor of Sociology & African-American Studies at Columbia University, a position he has held continuously since 1999. In his work, Venkatesh has studied gangs and underground economies, public housing, advertising and technology. As of 2018, he is the Director of Signal: The Tech & Society Lab at Columbia University.

<i>SuperFreakonomics</i> 2009 book by Steven Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

SuperFreakonomics: Global Cooling, Patriotic Prostitutes, and Why Suicide Bombers Should Buy Life Insurance is the second non-fiction book by University of Chicago economist Steven Levitt and The New York Times journalist Stephen J. Dubner, released in early October 2009 in Europe and on October 20, 2009 in the United States. It is a sequel to Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything.

<i>Filthy Lucre: Economics for People Who Hate Capitalism</i>

Filthy Lucre: Economics for People Who Hate Capitalism is a 2009 book by Joseph Heath. The book is organized around twelve fallacies or myths associated with economics, six of which are common on the left, and six of which are common on the right. It considers ideas like that the government should get out of the way of markets; that competition and Adam Smith’s invisible hand improve efficiency; the 'psychopathic' nature of corporations; and the inevitability of capitalism's collapse.

The State of Texas is considered to have some of the most relaxed gun laws in the United States. Public concerns over gun control in Texas have increased in recent years as Mexican drug cartels continue to commit violent crimes closer to Texas' stretch of the Mexico–United States border. They have also increased due to the number of incidents, including misuse of firearms stolen from other sources.

John J. Donohue III is a law professor, economist, and the C. Wendell and Edith M. Carlsmith Professor of Law at Stanford Law School. He is widely known for his writings on effect of legalized abortion on crime and for his criticism of John Lott's book More Guns, Less Crime.

<i>No, They Cant</i>

No, They Can't: Why Government Fails – But Individuals Succeed is a 2012 book by John Stossel, the American consumer reporter, investigative journalist, author and libertarian columnist. It was published on April 10, 2012, and focuses on what Stossel sees as the failures of government intervention.

<i>Private Guns, Public Health</i>

Private Guns, Public Health is a 2004 policy opinion book by David Hemenway, an economist who has served as Professor of Health Policy at the Harvard School of Public Health as well as the Director of Harvard's Injury Control Research Center. He argues that the widespread ownership of firearms in private hands in the U.S. promotes the spread of the "disease" of gun violence, and he takes a collective interpretation of the Second Amendment while stating that increased regulations are absolutely necessary in the purposes of public safety. Hemenway makes the central case that "more guns in a community lead to more homicide". He published the book through the University of Michigan Press in 2004. A new edition was released, also by the University of Michigan Press, in 2017.

References

  1. Johnson, Ronald (2012-11-01). "Introducing "Freedomnomics"". Monthly Labor Review . 135 (11): 38–40.
  2. Lirely, Roger (2007-10-30). "'Freedomnomics' gives alternative take on 'Freakonomics' argument". Asheville Citizen-Times . ProQuest document ID 1471896507.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 VerBruggen, Robert (June 28, 2007). "John Lott, Loaded". The American . Retrieved October 30, 2012.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Michael J. New, Whole Lott of Freedom A marketable defense of free markets, National Review, (July 16, 2007).
  5. Potts, N. Joseph. "Freedomnomics". Mises Wire. Archived from the original on 2014-05-03. Retrieved 2012-10-30.
  6. Readings in Applied Microeconomics: The Power of the Market
  7. Freedomnomics, pp. 6–11
  8. Freedomnomics, pp. 15–22
  9. Freedomnomics, pp. 20–22
  10. Freedomnomics, pp. 35–39
  11. 1 2 Freedomnomics, pp. 40–82
  12. Freedomnomics, ch. 3
  13. Freedomnomics, ch. 4
  14. Freedomnomics, ch. 5