By Steven Landsburg
2007
The
Theory of the Leisure Class
An economic mystery: Why do the poor seem to have more free time than the rich?
March 9, 2007
Women Are Chokers
Studies show they cave under pressure. Why? February 9, 2007
2006
How
the Web Prevents Rape
All that Internet porn reduces sex crimes. Really. October 30, 2006
How
Much Should Hotel Web Access Cost?
Sometimes it's free. Sometimes it's $20 a day. Why? February 1, 2006
Do
the Poor Deserve Life Support?
A woman who couldn't pay her bills is unplugged from her ventilator and dies. Is
this wrong? January 3, 2006
2005
The Price of Motherhood
Ready to have a baby? You'll earn 10 percent more if you wait a year. Dec 09,
2005
Hurricane Relief? Or a $200,000 Check?
I'd take the check, and so would most of Katrina's victims. Sep 22, 2005
No Relief
Why we shouldn't aid Katrina's victims too much. Sep 07, 2005
Is
Housing Too Expensive? Blame the Government
Maybe zoning laws are causing the real-estate bubble. Jul 29, 2005
Vine
Is Money
Why those fancy tomatoes cost so much. May 25, 2005
Imagine Terri Were a Toaster …
An economist considers the Schiavo case. Mar 28, 2005
Save and Save and Then Save Some
More
Social Security is a red herring. Here's our real
long-term problem. Feb. 18, 2005
2004
What I Like About Scrooge
In praise of misers. Dec 09, 2004
Bush's Tax Cuts Are Unfair ...
To the rich. Oct 21, 2004
Don't Vote
It
makes more sense to play the lottery. Sep 29, 2004
The $100 Terrorist Insurance Plan
A better way to screen airline passengers. Aug 04,
2004
The Sin of Wages
The real reason to oppose the minimum wage. Jul 09,
2004
Feed the Worms Who Write Worms to the
Worms
The economic logic of
executing computer hackers. May 26, 2004
The Economics of Faking Orgasm
(No, really. March 19, 2004)
2003
Maybe Parents Don't Like Boys
Better
(A follow-up to the recent column about whether daughters cause
divorce. Oct. 14, 2003)
Oh, No: It's a Girl!
(Do
daughters cause divorce? October 2, 2003)
Why Do Gays Smoke So Much?
August 4, 2003
Why Jews Don't Farm
June
13, 2003
We Find Ourselves … Guilty
(Should we punish juries that get it wrong? May 19, 2003)
The Case for Looting
(Redistribution of wealth, Baghdad-style April 14, 2003)
Great Expectations?
(The
war's going worse than expected. So what? Almost everything in life goes worse
than expected. April 9, 2003)
Is Your Life Worth $10
Million?
(Nope. But your grandson's will be. March 3, 2003)
2002
Beat on the Brat
(The
economics of spanking. December 9, 2002)
Phony Generosity
(Economics Nobelist Vernon Smith's alarming discovery about human nature.
October 10, 2002)
One Small Step for Man …
(… and one giant leap for economists: How we figured out why people walk up
staircases but not up escalators. August 28, 2002)
The Great Banana
Revolution
(Should you peel bananas from the bottom up? June 27, 2002)
Shut City Hall!
(The
Supreme Court concludes that most government agencies should be out of business.
June 4, 2002)
Short Changed
(Why do tall
people make more money? March 25, 2002)
Click, Clack, and Car Talk
(NPR's Tappet brothers are wrong about the societal costs of car phones.
January 30, 2002)
2001
$10 a Foot
(Should we stop
Paul Morgan from amputating his feet on the Web? November 26, 2001)
Afghanistan After the War
(Don't give them democracy. Give them capitalism. November 6, 2001)
Flying Pork Barrels
(The
airline bailout enriches stockholders at the expense of taxpayers. September 28,
2001)
Sell Me a Story
(Two
skyscrapers, built at the same time in the same block. One's much taller. Why?
September 6, 2001)
Making Your Tax Rebate Pay
(Wanna promote the general welfare? Here's what to do with your tax rebate.
July 31, 2001)
Hey, Gorgeous, Here's a Raise!
(As for you fatties, we're cutting your salaries. July 9, 2001)
The Readers Weigh In
(Your
theories on why America is getting fatter. May 31, 2001)
Don't Ask, Don't Tell
Campaign-Finance Reform
(Would it make politics cleaner? I dunno. May
25, 2001)
Why Are We Getting So Fat?
(A few theories on America's weight problem. May 2, 2001)
Why God Created Junk Food
(The rationality of Big Macs, cashews, and … unlimited sex appetites. April
6, 2001)
Putting All Your Potatoes in One
Basket
(The economic lessons of the Great Famine. March 13, 2001)
The First One Now Will Later Be
Last
(A foolproof method to shorten queues. February 8, 2001)
Microwave Oven Liberation
(Household appliances, not Gloria Steinem, ushered women into the workplace.
January 4, 2001)
2000
Why Men Pay To Stay Married
(And women pay to get divorced. Dec. 1, 2000)
If eBay Ran the Election
(Who
would buy the votes and what would they pay? Nov 01, 2000)
Don't Pay Down the National Debt
(It's a great deal. Sept. 14, 2000)
The Crazy Incentives of the Drug
War
(You think it's designed to discourage drugs? Think again. Aug 14,
2000)
The NFL's Parity Perplex
(The
salary cap is one of the mysteries of the universe June 23, 2000)
The Return of the Giant Shopping
Carts!!!
(The readers share their theories on why carts got so big. May
30, 2000)
Attack of the Giant Shopping
Carts!!!
(A few theories on why they got sooooo big. April 26, 2000)
The Joy of Hedging
(The case
for investing against your heart and with your head. Mar 22, 2000)
I've Got To Admit It's Getting
Better
(And here's a way to measure it. Feb 10, 2000)
The Mother-in-Law of Invention
(The patent system sucks because it overrewards and underrewards. Here's a
way to make the system work better. Jan. 13, 2000)
1999
Is Everybody Happy?
(The
cost-benefit analysis of making folks smile. Nov. 9, 1999)
Planning for Obsolescence
(Not everything should last forever. Oct. 14, 1999)
Too True To Be Good
(The real
reason you can't believe everything you read. Sept. 16, 1999)
Grade Expectations
(Why grade
inflation is bad for schools--and what to do about it. Aug. 12, 1999)
A-n-t-i-c-i-p-a-t-i-o-n
(The
economics of deferred gratification. July 14, 1999)
How Big a Safety Net?
(The
philosopher says we have a moral obligation to create a social safety net. The
economist asks, how big, and whom should it cover? May 5, 1999)
My Way to the eBay
(An
economics professor's strategy for winning online auctions. April 9, 1999)
Sex, Discipline, and Your
Refrigerator
(The evolutionary advantages of self-restraint. March 5,
1999)
Win, Place, and No!
(The
only truly fair election is the one with one voter. February 6, 1999)
Guilt by Acquisition
(Should
today's stockholders pay the price of a corporation's past sins? Jan. 8, 1999)
1998
Efficient Mortality
(The
dismal logic of total decline. Dec. 4, 1998)
Party Tricks
(Twenty dollar
bills and campaign finance reform. Nov. 6, 1998)
Privatize the Independent Counsel!
(Tired of Kenneth Starr wasting your money? Then give him the right
incentives. Sept. 4, 1998)
Justice—Priced to Sell
(Remind
me, why is it better to let 10 guilty people go free than to convict one
innocent person? Aug. 7, 1998)
Taken to the Cleaners?
(Nobody can explain why laundries charge less for men's shirts than for
women's. July 3, 1998)
Monopoly Shopping
(As a
consumer, would you be better off if Netscape controlled the browser market, or
if Microsoft did? June 5, 1998)
Booked Up
(The difference
between buying at Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com. May 8, 1998)
Let the Rabbi Split the Pie
(Talmudic wisdom applied to bankruptcy. April 10, 1998)
Uninsured-Motorist Fun
(The
laugh's on you if you're paying a high premium for car insurance. Feb. 6, 1998)
1997
Take This Simple Test
(... And
find out how rational you are. Dec. 5, 1997)
Buy a House, Lose Your Job?
(The surprising connection between homeownership and unemployment. Nov. 7,
1997)
Wealthier Than Thou
(Is it
enough to be rich, or must others be poor? Oct. 10, 1997)
The Marriage Contract
(Divorce
is just a breakdown in negotiations. Sept. 12, 1997)
Property Is Theft
(When
protecting your own property is stealing from others. Aug. 3, 1997)
My Personal Trade Deficit
(Since the Barnes & Noble opened in neighboring Pittsford, my trade
deficit with that town has exploded. June 27, 1997)
Pay Scales in Black and White
(Does discrimination explain the differences in salaries? May 30, 1997)
Who Shall Inherit the Earth?
(Our obligation to the unborn. May 2, 1997)
Be Fruitful and Multiply
(Do
the world a favor: Have more children. April 13, 1997)
Tax the Knickers Off Your
Grandchildren
(If income redistribution is such a good idea, let's make
those rich future generations pay. March 7, 1997)
Judge Not
(It's time to knock
the stuffing out of judicial featherbedding. Feb. 1, 1997)
Giving Your All
(The math on
the back of the envelope Jan. 11, 1997)
1996
Texaco's Uncompensated Victims
(How corporate discrimination hurts stockholders. Dec. 7, 1996)
Putting on Heirs
(How parents
decide about divvying up the loot. Nov. 8, 1996)
The Perfect Tax
(If there must
be taxes, at least they should be inefficient. Oct. 11, 1996)
Squeal or Deal?
(Why the
Whitewater defendants and the CIA should study economics. Sept. 13, 1996)
Kwitcherbellyachin'
(You--personally--can eliminate the national debt. Aug. 3, 1996)
More Sex Is Safer Sex
(The
economic case for promiscuity. July 6, 1996)