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Open: The Story of Human Progress

A herd of camels makes their way across the desert with a modern city skyline in the background

The ideal of an open world faces many challenges, including infectious diseases like COVID-19 and a rise in economic protectionism and illiberal politics. But, as Johan Norberg argues, openness is critical to human success. The freedom to explore and exchange has led to stunning achievements in science and culture as well as unprecedented wealth and opportunity. Watch the event to learn why an open world and an open economy are worth fighting for, now more than ever.

Abolish Price and Wage Controls

Price and Wage Controls in a Pandemic

Price gouging has become a controversial topic in the COVID-19 pandemic. Movements in market prices of products, services, and labor provide ongoing messages about their relative scarcity—of supply relative to demand. In this Pandemics and Policy study, the R. Evan Scharf Chair for the Public Understanding of Economics, Ryan Bourne, explains why state governments should not adopt anti‐​price‐​gouging laws, as they may thwart a full recovery.

Is Free Speech Still Alive on the American College Campus?

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The status of free speech and academic freedom at U.S. colleges and universities has become an explosive issue. Critics claim that disruptions, disinvitations of speakers, and bureaucratic new speech‐​inhibiting policies have smothered the open and honest discourse. Others consider the fears of crisis overblown, discerning the harms as less extensive in the vast domain of higher education than critics acknowledge. Drawing on his extensive experience as a free speech and academic freedom leader, Donald A. Downs portrays the university as an “intellectual polis” where free and honest academic discourse should pervade. Watch the event to see Downs and his guests at the Cato Institute discuss this important issue.

Experts

David Boaz Headshot
David Boaz
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Trevor Burrus
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David Kirby
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Johan Norberg
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Tom G. Palmer
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Aaron Ross Powell

Subtopics

  • Economic Theory
  • Law and Economics
  • Libertarianism
  • Limited Government
  • The American Founders

Featured

Blog

The Vaccine Allocation Mess In New York

By Ryan Bourne.

Bureaucratic prioritization and fines for decentralized decisions are causing havoc in New York City’s vaccine rollout.

Blog

The Libertarian Alternative

By Robert A. Levy.

In essence, libertarianism is the political philosophy of personal and economic freedom.

Blog

Trump Cannot Stay In Power By Declaring Martial Law

By Walter Olson.

The president of the United States has no lawful authority to reverse or suspend the outcome of an election by sending in the military or invoking martial law or the Insurrection Act. 

Blog

Trump’s Christmas Pardon Spree

By Gene Healy.

President Trump’s record of shabbiness and self‐​dealing ranks him among the worst abusers of the pardon power.

Commentary

The Origins of a Warning from Voltaire

By Walter Olson. The Bulwark.

In my view, the widely encountered Internet quote does check out as very much what Voltaire was trying to warn us about in this passage.

Blog

The Economics of Vaccine Distribution

By Ryan Bourne.

If the vaccine has a high enough efficacy, then under certain assumptions, it’s better to prioritize those more likely to transmit the disease for early inoculations.

Subtopics

  • Economic Theory
  • Law and Economics
  • Libertarianism
  • Limited Government
  • The American Founders

Multimedia

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Myths of American Exceptionalism Left and Right

Featuring Anthony Comegna and Caleb O. Brown. January 12, 2021.

Thomas A. Firey discusses his article, “Life, Liberty, and M*A*S*H,” on the Freedom Hub Freedom Working Group

Featuring Thomas A. Firey. January 7, 2021.

Virginia Postrel discusses her new book, The Fabric of Civilization

Featuring Virginia Postrel. January 1, 2021.

David Boaz, Clark Neily, and Thomas A. Firey on the good, bad, and ugly of 2020

Featuring David Boaz, Clark Neily, and Thomas A. Firey. January 1, 2021.
More Multimedia

Events

City Seminar

Cato Institute Policy Perspectives 2021

October 15, 2021 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM EDT
The Pierre, 2 East 61st Street, 5th Ave, New York, NY 10065

For more information on the seminar, please contact Sophia Coyne‐​Kosnak at (202) 216‑1490 / sck@​cato.​org.

Virtual Naples City Seminar

Virtual Naples City Seminar

January 26, 2021 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM EST
Live Online

For more information on the seminar, please contact Sophia Coyne‐​Kosnak at (202) 216‑1490 / sck@​cato.​org.

City Seminar

Cato Institute Policy Perspectives 2020

Rescheduled for December 2021
Ritz Carlton Chicago, 160 E Pearson St, Chicago, IL

This event has been rescheduled for December 2021. Please contact Sophia Coyne‐​Kosnak at (202) 216‑1490 / sck@​cato.​org for any additional questions.

Live Online Book Forum

Leave Me Alone and I’ll Make You Rich: How the Bourgeois Deal Enriched the World

October 30, 2020 12:45 PM to 1:55 PM EDT
Live Online
Featuring Professor Deirdre McCloskey (@DeirdreMcClosk), Distinguished Professor of Economics, History, English, and Communication, University of Illinois at Chicago; Professor Art Carden (@ArtCarden), Professor of Economics, Samford University Brock School of Business; moderated by Ryan Bourne (@MrRBourne), R. Evan Scharf Chair for the Public Understanding of Economics, Cato Institute.
More Events

Cato Studies

PA 903 - Cover

Despite Modi, India Has Not Yet Become a Hindu Authoritarian State

Swaminathan S. Anklesaria Aiyar.
November 24, 2020
pa902-cover.jpg

Government in a Pandemic

Thomas A. Firey.
November 17, 2020
Research Brief 240 Cover

Economic Crisis, General Laws, and the Mid‐​19th‐​Century Transformation of American Political Economy

Naomi R. Lamoreaux and John Joseph Wallis.
November 11, 2020
Article title in foreground of a stock market information screen

Abolish Price and Wage Controls

Ryan Bourne.
September 15, 2020
More Cato Studies

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