Sex Sells

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sex-sells

The BBC has an interesting article on the status of the prostitution industry in New Zealand since it was legalized in 2003. The reception of legalization in the past six years has been overwhelmingly positive. The industry has changed quite a lot since 2003, with women receiving more legal protection in terms of their rights as sex workers, and their ability to gain protection from police when they are abused.

Some of the interviewed prostitutes claimed that the brothel conditions are quite good, and that since they now have more options they no longer have to put up with abusive owners or clients. Although the trade is not socially accepted, prostitutes are now treated with respect and feel safer.

Legalization seems to leave both prostitutes and their clients in a better situation. Clients no longer have to go to seedy back alleys to pick up workers and prostitutes are much better protected. Europe [the Dutch excluded] should learn the leson and legalize prostitution. It would help protect some honest hard workers and provide tax revenues for the state.

One cigar at a time

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one-cigar-at-a-time

One unintended consequence of the smoking ban has been the rise of e-cigarettes. Although I have yet to see them in the flesh, with sales in excess of 1,000 every month for the £40 starter-packs, it can only be a matter of time before they are a common sight.

One can picture the scene. A packed restaurant with waiters and waitresses rushed off their feet. From his pocket of a young gentleman produces the e-cigarette and starts to partake. Silence. A young lady screams and faints; the passing chef returns to the kitchen to fetch his sharpest cleaver; the restaurant owner’s finger hits the first of three nines. Calm, the restaurant manager asks the man with his now mortified date to leave.

Deafly silence is broken by an explanation of the product, but confusion and consternation still reigns as the man refuses to be deterred. He continues to smoke while tucking into his poached langoustines. Faux coughs abound, surely it only a matter of minutes before the young gentleman will be hounded from the restaurant by his fellow dinners. However, the mob will grin and bare it tonight: the lady on the next table, a comrade, asks if she could try the e-cigarette. The baying mob has been held at bay, it is a small victory for freedom.

If the owner of any restaurant chooses not to allow smoking they should be free to make their restaurant non-smoking. Though, the alternate should also hold. Private property should be protected from the excessive regulations of an intrusive government. Let people be free to lead their lives in the manner to which they choose. Don’t regulate, nudge or even suggest. It is time to fight back, preferably with cohiba esplendidos rather than e-cigarettes.

Blog Review 902

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blog-review-902

You can't make sense of the unemployment numbers unless you relate them to the size of the workforce.

An unlikely hero for the taxpayers: Alistair Darling.

Companies failing is not an indictment of capitalism, it's the very essence of it, it's the proof that capitalism is working.

What would happen if drugs were decriminalised? Why not look at a place that has done that and see what did happen?

It's all about the gains from trade and the banking system moves those inter-temporarily. That's why we want a banking system.

A doctor talking about Giffen Goods when discussing alcohol consumption? Maybe the economists are starting to make an impact?

And finally, accountants bless the IRS.

Could do better

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could-do-better

Yes, Dr John Dunford is right that "The government should trust school leaders more, hold them to account intelligently, have clearer priorities and take fewer, better planned initiatives," and yes, they should also show more regard to the views of parents. But Dr Dunford is quite wrong to see the moves from the city to the classroom as a sign of the lessening moral regard young people have for banking jobs. People are leaving the city because they have lost their jobs, and not applying because there aren't any to get.

To be fair to fair to him, Dr Dunford does spend all his time around teachers and as such it will be hard for him to understand being sacked; we all know useless teachers are just moved on to other schools.

Dr Dunford is also right to criticize the so-called ‘Tesco Model’ of Ed Balls as explained as Whitehall being the company headquarters with teachers as the branch managers and shelf-fillers. However, the Tesco analogy is a bad one, as state education would be run better by Tesco than it is at present: at least it would be customer driven and bad teachers would be shown the door.
 
Given that Dr Dunford’s job is to look after the interests of ASCL members, one cannot expect much better from him. I would welcome the day when children are taught at an equivalent level of service we get at supermarkets, with competition for customers equivalent to that between the likes of Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Lidl, Co-op Waitrose, Whole Foods and Morrisons.

AIG: Benefits of the bailout

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aig-benefits-of-the-bailout

After much pressure from the United States of America’s taxpayers and government, the insurance giant American International Group (AIG) finally disclosed the names of the financial institutions that benefited from the fall bailout. Among the names were the likes of Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch, Deutsche Bank, Barclays, among others. These companies received indirect multi-billion dollar payments from US taxpayers.

Aligned with the actions of other financial executives’ actions in the past 18 months or so, AIG’s leaders (including chief executive Edward Liddy) have been criticized for taking irresponsible risks on investments based on dodgy credit derivatives. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has been quoted on the issue as saying: “Here was a company that made all kinds of unconscionable bets. Then, when those bets went wrong, they had a — we had a situation where the failure of that company would have brought down the financial system." Not only has it made grand payments to financial institutions it was indebted to with taxpayer money, AIG was recently discovered to be rewarding their executives with multi-million dollar bonuses.

It is appropriate to say that not all of the executives receiving bonuses at AIG are responsible for the current state of the insurance company. The innocent executives may have been completing fantastic work over the past 18 months and should be rewarded in some way. But the fact of the matter is that the company does not have the funds to do so. After reporting a recent historical US corporate loss, AIG is a failing company in a turbulent economy. With many Americans out of work and tons of other companies struggling to pay their employees average salaries, it simply isn’t on the cards for any AIG executive to receive a bonus from US tax dollar funded subsidies. This may serve as a major lesson for the US government, that bailout packages are not always in the best interest of the citizens, the economy, or the government. When companies receive money they have not earned, they will dispense the funds as they feel is appropriate for the company, not what politicians think is best for the economy.

Highly recommended

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highly-recommended

The Libertarian Alliance is holding its Chris R. Tame Memorial Lecture tonight at the National Liberal Club in Westminster. It looks set to be an excellent event.

This year’s speaker is Professor Kevin Dowd, a libertarian economist who has written extensively on the banking system and monetary policy. His lecture is titled ‘Lessons from the Financial Crisis: A Libertarian Perspective’.

The event is from 6.30 – 8.30pm, with the speech first and then a drinks reception afterwards. Admission is free. The dress code is lounge suit or smart casual. RSVP to helen@libertarian.co.uk.

Brian Mickelthwait has trailed the lecture in slightly more detail here on Samizdata.

Bonuses and public service

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bonuses-and-public-service

Last week I wrote regarding public sector bonuses and the Lib Dem’s calls for more top private sector salaries to be disclosed. But, I think this issue runs deeper and is a symptom of a fundamental divide that that needs to be broken down.
 
This Government has created a gulf between the public and themselves with an ever increasing ‘them and us' attitude. If the fundamental aim of a government is to serve the people to the best of their ability, then this has firmly been flipped upside down. We are now serving politicians more than ever before.
 
The double standards we're subject to are illustrated by the public/private bonuses. Whilst the government is demonising bankers’ salaries, they are simultaneously awarding civil servants a total of £107.8m in bonuses. In truth, there is no reason as to why public sector workers should receive bonuses at all.
 
But this hypocritical divide is more widespread than this. Look at the ministerial expenses. Simply examin the examples set by Jacqui Smith, Michael Martin, Caroline Spelman and Derek Conway as indicators that we are now serving politicians.
 
Politicians need to be held to account more effectively in order to strengthen democracy and restore a culture of public service in Whitehall.

Quote of the week

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quote-of-the-week

It's not an endlessly expanding list of rights – the "right" to education, the "right" to health care, the "right" to food and housing. That's not freedom, that's dependency. Those aren't rights, those are the rations of slavery – hay and a barn for human cattle.

Alexis de Tocqueville P.J. O'Rourke

Blog Review 901

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blog-review-901

African undevelopment...the result of colonialism, the slave trade...or could it be that malaria is the major cause?

For those who would run the world financial system. Show how well you do at this game before we take you seriously.

On the AIG bailout and counterparty list. All financial bailouts are counterparty bailouts. More here.

Not all economists back the wider bailout.

What happens when the economic order is not based upon secure property rights.

Atlas Shrugged, the Guardian and Christian Socialism.

And finally, how to tell when your government is too big.

Cigarettes, now alcohol

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cigarettes-now-alcohol

At what point do we start making gin at home? Not too long if Sir Liam Donaldson has anything to do with it. The architect of the smoking ban is going to suggest that the government institutes a minimum price for alcohol. His plan: no drinks will be sold for less than 50 pence per unit of alcohol. It would of course fail to meet its aims and is a slippery slope towards prohibition.

Despite the BBC taking a clear line in favour of the move, the government it seems will not institute such an unpopular policy so close to a general election. James Purnell, Work and Pensions Secretary, has already come out in opposition, stating that ministers have no intention of going ahead with something that would punish the responsible majority of drinkers.

At some point though, cheap alcohol will be scrapped. As a Department of Health spokeswoman stated: "We have not ruled out taking action on very cheap alcohol - it's clearly linked to people drinking more and the subsequent harm to their health." The socialistic stance of the Department of Health will live on in the next government (no matter who wins) and alcohol will continue to be on the public health agenda, especially with Scotland's plans.

The most disturbing thing to come out of this nonsense is the fact the Liberal Democrat Culture, Media and Sport spokesman Don Foster has come out as a fan of plan, saying, “The Liberal Democrats have long argued that the ridiculously cheap below-cost price of alcohol in some of our supermarkets and off-licenses is a key contributor to the problem of binge drinking...We welcome Sir Liam’s intervention and hope that the Government will act." It is clearly time for Clegg to decide what it means to be a Liberal Democrat; he needs his ‘Clause IV’ moment, arguing for true liberalism in economic and social policy.