15 | November | 2012

Saturday, May 25, 2013

Markets in everything: Market-based, low overhead medical care with transparent pricing as an antidote to Obamacare

Mark J. Perry | November 15, 2012, 9:20 pm

I’ve featured the market-based, consumer-driven Surgery Center of Oklahoma in Oklahoma City several times before on CD, see posts here and here. Unlike most other medical providers, the Surgery Center actually posts transparent pricing and offers deeply-discounted, payable-in-advance, cash-only medical … read more >

Members of the Free Syrian Army take up a position during a truce on the top of a hilly mountain in the Kurdish area of al-Qaftal, overlooking the town of Azaz, October 31, 2012. Picture taken October 31, 2012. REUTERS/Asmaa Waguih

Foreign and Defense Policy, Middle East and North Africa

Reaping what we sow: A Middle East afire

Danielle Pletka | November 15, 2012, 2:45 pm

Be not deceived; God is not mocked: For whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. I’m usually not big for quoting the Bible, let alone using it as a political guide. But these words of wisdom are wise … read more >

Carpe Diem

3 examples of industry cartels using rent-seeking, regulatory capture to eliminate competition and ‘protect consumers’

Mark J. Perry | November 15, 2012, 1:59 pm

1. San Francisco taxi cartel vs. the thriving and popular high-tech, on-demand ride-sharing services, from the SF Chronicle: The state Public Utilities Commission on Wednesday fined Uber, Lyft and SideCar $20,000 each for illegally operating their high-tech taxi and limousine … read more >

Pethokoukis

Charts: Warfare State and Innovation State down, Welfare State up

James Pethokoukis | November 15, 2012, 1:30 pm

So what exactly is the cause of America’s fiscal problem? And it is not just about declining defense budgets. As a recent report from Third Way concluded, ”As the Baby Boomers enter retirement, entitlements will encroach upon an even greater portion … read more >

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta, and U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Susan E. Rice attend the dignified transfer ceremony for the U.S. Ambassador to Libya J. Christopher Stevens. Image credit: Official Secretary of Defense Flickr

Foreign and Defense Policy

Ask the scholars: Who’s on deck for State and Defense?

Brittany French | November 15, 2012, 1:21 pm

There’s been a ton of talk in the media over who President Obama will appoint as successors to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta. Rumors are flying that Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry … read more >

Image Credit: Official U.S. Navy Imagery (Flickr) (CC BY 2.0)

Foreign and Defense Policy

Beef jerky and the nation’s defense

Danielle Pletka | November 15, 2012, 11:42 am

So, Senator Coburn, if only the Pentagon stopped funding beef jerky, we’d have enough to pay for the deficit or something? We could save $67 billion? And what about those who say we ought to cut a trillion? Because that’s … read more >

Pethokoukis

Will Obama make one last run at a broad homeowner bailout or mass refi?

James Pethokoukis | November 15, 2012, 11:19 am

A bit of buzz in Washington that not only will President Obama replace Ed DeMarco — perhaps with a stick-it-in-your-eye recess appointment — as the regulator of Fannie and Freddie — but also that DeMarco’s departure from the Federal Housing … read more >

Politics and Public Opinion

Team Obama’s revolutionary advertising strategy

Henrik Temp | November 15, 2012, 10:21 am

The Obama campaign has been the first national team to embrace the new era of data-driven politics, and they have done so with gusto. Team Romney, with its pathetic “ORCA” GOTV effort and its dinosaur ad-buying strategy, stands as a warning to future campaigns: Modernize or die. read more >

Image credit: Kevin Shorter (Flickr) (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Pethokoukis

Get ready for a taxpayer bailout of the Federal Housing Administration

James Pethokoukis | November 15, 2012, 10:07 am

The Wall Street Journal’s Nick Timiraos: The Federal Housing Administration is expected to report this week it could exhaust its reserves because of rising mortgage delinquencies, according to people familiar with the agency’s finances, a development that could result in … read more >

Foreign and Defense Policy, Europe and Russia

Three cheers for the Magnitsky Act and American values

Leon Aron | November 15, 2012, 10:00 am

In the next few days, the House and the Senate will almost certainly vote on and pass the Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act. The bill is named after a 37-year old lawyer who was tortured to death in … read more >