Source: Bet On It
by Bryan Caplan
“Have you ever seen an entrepreneur take some cash out of his wallet and light it on fire? Though I definitely remember seeing such conflagrations in movies and television, I’ve never seen even a solitary dollar bill burn in real life. Still, I have no doubt that someone somewhere has burned some money. Imagine, then, that the government passes a law against the burning of money. (Technically, this law already exists, though it is unclear if anyone has ever actually been punished for burning their own money!) What, if anything, would be wrong with passing — and strictly enforcing — such a law? If the law correctly identifies money, the direct effects are trivial because almost no one wants to burn their own money. The indirect effects, however, might still be onerous.” (10/02/24)
https://www.betonit.ai/p/whats-wrong-with-a-law-against-burning