Reason Foundation

Recent Research and Commentary

California Bill Proposes Licensing for Pet Groomers

February 3, 2012, 5:14pm

Adam Summers

It appears that California truly has gone to the dogs. The state is facing a $9.2 billion budget deficit, a $10 billion unemployment insurance fund deficit, and unfunded pension obligations in the range of $400 billion to $500 billion, yet the busybodies in the state legislature are seeking to add another occupation to the long list of those burdened by unnecessary state regulation: pet grooming.

Will States Toast Liquor Privatization in 2012?

Reviewing the landscape for divesting state alcohol monopolies

February 3, 2012

Leonard Gilroy

Despite the end of Prohibition many decades ago, taxpayers and consumers in over a dozen states today still rely on outdated state bureaucracies that retain monopoly control over the sale and/or distribution of distilled spirits (liquor). Not only is it difficult to justify government-run liquor enterprises as a core function of government—they clearly aren’t, since most states don’t have them—but worse, these systems tend to act like the monopolies they are by limiting product choice and making liquor more expensive and less convenient for consumers. However, recent moves by Washington State and Ohio to privatize their liquor monopolies may be upsetting the apple cart and setting the stage for additional states to follow suit.

Freedom of Speech on the Internet is the 'Paramount Concern'

January 31, 2012, 12:19pm

Steven Titch

Is the Cost of Internet Piracy Overhyped?

January 24, 2012, 2:55pm

Steven Titch

Coulton's comment, contributed to the ongoing debate over the accuracy of the $500 million Megaupload is said to have cost artist and producers.

South Carolina: The State that Booed the Golden Rule

January 23, 2012, 6:44pm

Adam Summers

As the post-mortem analysis of the South Carolina Republican presidential primary is written and we look ahead to the first Republican debate in Florida tonight, the thing that sticks with me most vividly from the South Carolina campaign was the reaction of the crowd in the Fox News debate, particularly when many in the audience booed Rep. Ron Paul for offering the notion of applying the Golden Rule to our nation's foreign policy.

Supreme Court Rules Police Need a Warrant to Track Your Car

January 23, 2012, 3:07pm

Steven Titch

The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously finds police require a search warrant to place a tracking device on a suspect's vehicle.

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