Assorted Links (2/9/2011)

Here’s a list of articles that I have been reading lately:

‘Reagan’s Final Triumph Over His Enemies’

american.com

“Steve Hayward explains what’s behind the newfound respect liberals have for Ronald Reagan.”

Why Small Business Wants Repeal of ObamaCare  

american.com

“The law is unpopular among small business owners because it is not making employee health insurance more affordable.”

Florida Drivers Paying For Auto Fraud

iii.org

“Florida is a hotbed for auto insurance fraud and the problem is growing worse, according to a new study from the Insurance Research Council (IRC).”

Notable & Quotable

online.wsj.com

“Apple CEO Steve Jobs on why dropping out of college was one of the best decisions he ever made.”

The Way Forward in Egypt

online.wsj.com

“In The Wall Street Journal, Global View columnist Bret Stephens writes from the Munich Security Conference that the U.S. risks abruptly ostracizing a regime that may yet hold on to power, while making common cause with an opposition that contains no shortage of U.S. enemies.”

John 3:16 Super Bowl Commercial : LookUp 316

lookup316.com

“John 3:16 – a message of hope. The LookUp 316 Super Bowl commercial aims to encourage people to look up John 3:16 and consider its profound message of hope.”

Doing the Math on a Jobless Recovery  

online.wsj.com

“In The Wall Street Journal, Brad Schiller writes that President Obama has urged us to be patient, but must we wait until 2018 to get back to full employment?”

Health-Care Investment—The Hidden Crisis  

online.wsj.com

“In The Wall Street Journal, Michael Milken says that we need to spend much more on medical research and remove government obstacles and barriers to innovation.”

In Defense of Being a Kid

online.wsj.com

“In The Wall Street Journal, Dartmouth Professor James Bernard Murphy discusses the controversial views of Amy Chua, the “tiger mother.” He says that children should be allowed to enjoy their brief years of innocence and spontaneity while also getting prepared for adulthood.”

“Did France Cause the Great Depression?,” D. Irwin (2010)  

afinetheorem.wordpress.com

This is a nice summary of Dartmouth Professor Douglas Irwin’s paper on the role played by the gold standard in the Great Depression, and in particular how France imposed massive deflation on the rest of the world economy by accumulating large amounts of gold in the years leading up to the Great Depression.  See also the EconTalk podcast entitled “Irwin on the Great Depression and the Gold Standard”.

Nobody Deserves Tenure

educationnext.org

“Nobody deserves tenure, with the possible exception of federal judges. University professors don’t deserve tenure; civil servants don’t deserve tenure; police and firefighters don’t deserve tenure; school teachers don’t deserve tenure.”

How the U.N. Encourages Religious Murder

online.wsj.com

“In The Wall Street Journal, Eric Rassbach and Ashley Samelson McGuire of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty write that anti-blasphemy laws are barbaric and certainly don’t deserve endorsement at Turtle Bay.”

Review & Outlook: Giving Hamp the Hook

online.wsj.com

“The Wall Street Journal says that Treasury’s mortgage foreclosure relief program is a bust and ought to be terminated.”

An ObamaCare Appeal From the States

online.wsj.com

“Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels writes in The Wall Street Journal that 21 governors representing more than 115 million Americans have written to Kathleen Sebelius asking for more flexibility on health-care reform.”

A Modest $500 Billion Proposal 

online.wsj.com

“Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul writes in The Wall Street Journal that his proposed spending cuts would keep 85% of government funding and not touch Social Security or Medicare.”

Made in the USA

boston.com

“IN ECONOMICS as in apparel, most fashions come and go. But like the navy blazer or the little black dress, bewailing the decline of American manufacturing never seems to go out of style.”

The 40 Percent Nation

nytimes.com

“What do Egypt’s underlying structures tell us about its future post-Mubarak?”

The Difficulty of Counting Protesters in Cairo

blogs.wsj.com

“How many people are protesting in Egypt? Without detailed, high-resolution aerial photos, the best numbers are educated guesses.”

Ben Bernanke’s ’70s Show

online.wsj.com

“In The Wall Street Journal, Allan H. Meltzer writes that inflation is on the horizon, and now is the time for the Fed to head it off.”