Source: EconLog
by Max Molden

“Mancur Olson’s The Rise and Decline of Nations doesn’t provide a particularly optimistic picture: once your nation has been stable for a while, and may even have risen to wealth, it becomes more and more vulnerable to ‘institutional sclerosis.’ This happens because small groups are better able to overcome free-riding, resulting in their ability to effectively skew the system towards their own interests. As more and more of these groups emerge, survive and are able to reap their rents—protected from that competition which makes for general progress and growth—the overall system deteriorates. If you take Olson’s work to its logical conclusion, a very effective cure for economic stagnation is a catastrophic war. That is obviously not a desirable solution. But Olson was pointing to a real issue: the longer a society remains stable, the more it gets choked by special interest groups.” (04/23/26)

https://www.econlib.org/econlog/ai-vs-the-rent-seekers

Source: The Contrarian
by Jennifer Rubin

“[W]hat are Republicans to do? They try blaming Joe Biden, but the public does not buy that he is still responsible for the economy. They try preconditioning the electorate to dispute the 2026 election with specious fraud claims, but have found none: courts have slapped down demands for voter rolls (a scheme to purge voters), and a blue wave would make fraud claims entirely unbelievable. They try labeling the affordability crisis a ‘hoax,’ which only further enrages voters. They try to distract voters from serial failures with mean-spirited attacks on trans Americans, but the vast majority of voters do not put that on the list of their top concerns. … In sum, Republicans are rarely asked what they have done to deserve re-election.” (04/23/26)

https://www.contrariannews.org/p/what-have-republicans-done-for-voters

Source: Foundation for Economic Education
by Mike Salem

“As London heads toward local elections on May 7, voters will hear plenty about housing, crime and the cost of living. But on the streets, literally underfoot, a smaller, more visible issue is shaping perceptions of how well the city is run: the explosion of dockless e-bikes. What should have been a triumph of consumer choice and green innovation has instead become a daily frustration. Across the capital, rental bikes are left sprawled across pavements, obstructing pedestrians and provoking growing public irritation. For many, this looks like a failure of the market. In reality, it is the opposite.” (04/23/26)

https://fee.org/articles/why-londons-dockless-e-bikes-are-causing-chaos/

Source: Adam Smith Institute
by Madsen Pirie

“Waymo cars are currently being tested in driverless mode in London and UK cities, and prepared for passenger use later this year. Waymo has started letting its software take the wheel on London streets, with trained specialists on standby as it gradually accelerates toward a fully driverless ride-hailing launch. It is aiming for a commercial launch in London by autumn 2026, which would make it the company’s first operational city outside the United States. Road safety is arguably the most significant potential benefit. Waymo’s technology has been involved in five times fewer injury-causing collisions, and twelve times fewer injury-causing collisions with pedestrians compared to human drivers in US deployments. … One of the most compelling and less-discussed benefits is for people who cannot drive.” (04/23/26)

https://www.adamsmith.org/blog/the-driverless-future-is-coming-soon

Source: Common Sense
by Paul Jacob

“A circuit court has ruled that Virginia’s new voter-passed congressional map, gerrymandered to give Democrats in the state a prohibitive advantage in the next congressional election, is unconstitutional.
Judge Jack Hurley, of the Circuit Court of the Commonwealth of Virginia for the 29th Judicial Circuit, Tazewell County, denied a motion to stay his injunction blocking certification of the election using the new districts. Former Virginia attorney general Ken Cuccinelli reports that once a final order is drafted and entered, ‘it will be immediately appealed.’ If the rejiggering survives the challenge, it could be the factor that tips the balance in the House of Representatives toward the Democrats next November.” (04/23/26)

https://thisiscommonsense.org/2026/04/23/un-redistricting-virginia/

Source: Fox News
by Lt. Col. Robert Maginnis, (USA, ret.)

“On Tuesday, President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social that he would extend the ceasefire with Iran — with no set deadline — until Tehran’s leaders can “come up with a unified proposal.” That announcement landed hours after Vice President JD Vance’s trip to Islamabad for a second round of peace talks was canceled without explanation, after Iranian officials told U.S. counterparts through Pakistani intermediaries that they would not appear at the table. Trump had said that very morning he did not want to extend. By Tuesday evening, he did. The extension may have been unavoidable. What happened in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday makes clear exactly what Washington bought.” (04/23/26)

https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/iran-ceasefire-extended-real-test-washington-starts