Op Ed

This article is GMO-free and gluten-friendly. Read it and your health will improve. Read the full article … [Read more...] about Society is awash in ignorance, misinformation

I just purchased some cryptocurrency, but hush… don’t tell my financial advisor. Money managers over the age of 50 think Bitcoin and see Dracula, then start reaching for the garlic wreath and silver cross. Financial pundits under 30 either shrug and wonder why the fuss, or gush with enthusiasm. To explain cryptocurrency, let’s start with the ideas of currency and … [Read more...] about Brave new world of digital currency

So, what would an ideal tax system look like?  Here is my personal wish list for the new year. Read the full article … [Read more...] about A handful of tax resolutions for the new year

I have three reactions to the announcement that government will tax marijuana. As a so-called child of the ’60s, I am unimpressed. As an economist, I know that pot will have an inelastic demand and will be a good revenue boost for government. As a political cynic, I can only shrug. Read the full article … [Read more...] about Tax code simplification necessary, long overdue

Most of us see vaccination solely as a health issue. However, vaccination to prevent disease has major economic benefits. Read the full article … [Read more...] about Flu vaccine has economic benefits

One would never start a weight-loss program without stepping on a scale, first to set a baseline and then to monitor progress with regular weigh-ins. Options to staring down at hard reality between your toes are to wear black, suck in your gut or choose friends who assert you are losing weight. Read the full article … [Read more...] about Health reform lacks objective assessment

Time and information are two sides of the same coin when it comes to the economy. I often drive with the majority shareholder in my household. Many of these trips entail searching for a parking spot by our destination. Now, I am a "close enough" kind of guy; the other shareholder in our household is a "nothing but the closest" type of person. Read the full article … [Read more...] about Time and information guide Economic Decisions

It is construction season in this city and, while idling with hundreds of other drivers, I wondered what economic lessons we can learn from gridlock. Read the full article … [Read more...] about Raising minimum wage won’t fight poverty

Hip replacements have experienced rapid technological advancement. Surgeons predict that within the next few years, some patients may be treated on an outpatient basis — in at 8 a.m., out in the evening. The surgical procedure, actual replacement unit and improved rehabilitation have combined to restore function quickly. Read the full article … [Read more...] about Curing the ‘cost disease’ in health care

I have just had my hip replaced, one of approximately 1,500 similar procedures to be performed in Manitoba this year. Aside from the nervousness I experienced since my hips are close to where I normally keep my brains, the experience afforded me an opportunity to reflect on the state of health-care costs. Read the full article … [Read more...] about Health costs rise as tech prices plummet — but why?  (Part 1)