Be in the room where it happens!
Hamilton is coming! If you don’t have Disney+, pay the $7 and watch Hamilton this weekend. It’s not only your patriotic duty, it is your duty as someone interested in economics.
On Friday I’ll publish a video explaining the economics behind a Hamilton song, so look out for it!
Create Your Own Federal Reserve
I learned only this last week that there is a city in Washington that has started printing its own money. The money is printed on blocks of wood and is only redeemable in the city. The goal was to stimulate economic activity in the city by giving people money that could only be spent in the city. My only question is what’s the conversion rate to Shrutebucks?
Police Incentives Matter
In response to the murder of George Floyd, we have started to see the strange incentives given to police. These incentives come from the institutions we have created. One example is civil asset forfeiture, which lets police take property from the people they pull over or arrest. Because many police departments can keep that revenue, the law creates an incentive for cash-strapped departments to take more from the communities they serve.
Another weird incentive is the general unwillingness to hold police accountable for shirking their duties. Two years ago we saw the Parkland school shooting. At the school there was a sheriff, but an investigation revealed that instead of intervening, he hid behind his car outside while the shooter killed students inside. Of course, the sheriff was fired. But this last week it was announced the sheriff would be reinstated with no punishment, and he would receive full back pay for the time he missed. What kind of incentive does that create?
I crashed my drone
Right before the pandemic began, I bought a drone. In fact, it got to my house just a few days after lockdowns began. At first it was fun because I could explore the area without even leaving my house. Then…I crashed it. The story is embarrassing, but it also has an economics lesson! So I made a video about it.