Source: David Friedman’s Substack
by David Friedman
“The owners of dishwashers pay for water and power, so if making them more efficient in those dimensions was costless, did not require giving up something else, there would be no need for the Department of Energy to make the manufacturers do it. I conclude that it was not costless, that it either made dishwashers cost more or do their job less well — take longer, not dry the dishes as well, not clean them as well. Using more power or water to do a better job is not waste. Covid provides a much larger example of the same mistake. Regulations were tailored to minimize infections from Covid, whatever the cost in other values.” (06/02/25)
https://daviddfriedman.substack.com/p/optimizing-on-a-single-variable