October 19, 2000

Greenspan Speaks at Cato on Oil Prices, New Economy
Government Indigestion Over Biotech Corn
Defense Industry Gunning for New Weapons

Greenspan Speaks at Cato on Oil Prices, New Economy

Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan was the keynote speaker at the Cato Institute's 18th Annual Monetary Conference, being held today. Mr. Greenspan argued that "it is the continuing acceleration of productivity that, by allowing businesses to absorb rising compensation increases without incurring ever-rising unit costs, has been so essential to containing price increases." He also discussed oil prices and their effect on the new economy. His speech, "Challenges for Monetary Policymakers," is available online.

Government Indigestion Over Biotech Corn

Millions of bushels of genetically engineered corn approved only for animal use have made their way into the human food supply chain, according to the Washington Post.

This follows reports last month that flour containing StarLink biotech corn had been used to make taco shells for the Taco Bell and Safeway brands. The recalls of these products prompted a series of investigations by federal regulators and the maker of the corn, Aventis CropScience. Some scientists fear that a protein in the corn might be allergenic.

In "Taco Terrorism," Steven Milloy dismisses concerns that the genetically engineered corn is dangerous. He argues that some groups are creating a scare from the "firm possibility of a definite maybe." The accused protein, CRY9C, "isn't derived from a source containing any known allergens, its protein sequence does not resemble other known allergens and none of the other biotech corn proteins are allergens," he writes.

Defense Industry Gunning for New Weapons

Defense industry officials fear that both presidential candidates have been too vague in outlining their plans for military weapon buying, according to the Washington Post. The Joint Strike Fighter (JSF), potentially the biggest Pentagon contract in history, is one of the programs that contractors fear might be axed. Although both candidates have pledged to increase defense spending, they have not specified how much of that would be dedicated to purchasing new weapons.

In "Hard Choices: Fighter Procurement in the Next Century," Williamson Murray questions whether the Pentagon's three separate and expensive new fighter programs are necessary. He argues that "considering the Department of Defense's other procurement requirements over the coming three decades, it is unreasonable for the Pentagon to procure expensive high-tech fighters in the proposed numbers and at a cost that will severely limit its other weapons purchases." He recommends canceling the F-22 and F-18E/F, and concentrating on the more futuristic JSF.

In "A Hollow Debate on Military Readiness," Ivan Eland criticizes the presidential candidates for entering into a bidding war to see who can throw the most money at the Pentagon. Eland argues that "if U.S. commitments overseas were reduced, inefficient and wasteful defense spending were eliminated, and post–Cold War readiness goals were more realistic, gaps between those goals and the state of the forces could be eliminated without increasing the defense budget."

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