2026-01-08 03:24:54
A few of you have been asking me this. The core standards are as follows:
1. Most notable figures in economics. MR has many economist readers, and these deaths are not usually well-publicized by mainstream media.
2. A cultural figure I feel more of you should know about. Various figures from say African music or foreign cinema might be examples here.
3. A person who, if even at a distance, has played some special role in my life.
Someone who would not get a mention would be, for instance, a leading footballer. I figure any of you who care already will be hearing about the death.
I also discriminate against suicides, as I consider suicide both a sin and as having (in most cases) high negative externalities on others. I am not so inclined to honor or glorify those who have killed themselves.
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2026-01-08 00:59:41
1. Under Australia’s social media ban, it will be harder for museums to reach young audiences.
2. The influence of Claremont Institute fellows.
4. The philosophy of Solvej Balle.
5. “Persuasion of humans in the bottleneck.”
6. Scott Sumner movie reviews. And more.
7. Bela Tarr, RIP (NYT).
8. David Zipper says “Europe Doesn’t Need Driverless Cars.” (FT)
The post Wednesday assorted links appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION.
2026-01-07 16:19:46
I’ve noted repeatedly in the past that the notion of AGI, as it is batted around these days, is not so well-defined. But that said, just imagine that any meaningful version of AGI is going to contain the concept “a lot more stuff gets produced.”
So say AGI comes along, what does that mean for taxation? There have been all these recent debates, some of them surveyed here, on labor, capital, perfect substitutability, and so on. But surely the most important first order answer is: “With AGI, we don’t need to raise taxes!”
Because otherwise we do need to raise taxes, given the state of American indebtedness, even with significant cuts to the trajectory of spending.
So the AGI types should in fact be going further and calling for tax cuts. Even if you think AGI is going to do us all in someday — all the more reason to have more consumption now. Of course that will include tax cuts for the rich, since they pay such a large share of America’s tax burden. (Effective Altruists, are you listening?”)
The rest of us can be more circumspect, and say “let’s wait and see.”
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2026-01-07 14:13:26
Over 1.2mn people came to the EU seeking protection in 2015, many displaced by worsening conflict in Syria. There were bitter political feuds in Brussels over asylum, border and relocation policies. January 2016 set a grim record for the number of migrants dying while attempting to cross the Mediterranean.
Now things have changed, as European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen made clear in December when she took the stage at a conference on migrant smuggling. After a major policy overhaul over the past two years, “Europe is managing migration responsibly,” she said. “The figures speak for themselves.”
Irregular arrivals of migrants to the EU recorded by its border agency Frontex dropped by 25 per cent in the 11 months to November 2024, and have been continuously declining since a recent peak of 380,000 arrivals registered in 2023.
New asylum applications have also decreased by around 26 per cent in the first nine months of last year, according to Eurostat data, as fewer Syrians are applying for protection since the fall of the authoritarian regime of Bashar al-Assad in late 2024.
Here is much more from Laura Dubois from the FT.
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2026-01-07 02:48:04
Venezuela’s stock market is now up +73% since President Maduro was captured. Since December 23rd, as President Trump ramped up pressure on Maduro’s government, Venezuela’s stock market is up +148%.
Here is the link and chart. And up seventeen percent in the last day, and now some more on top of that. Note the bolivar is down only a small amount since December 23.
I see the reality as such:
a) Immoral actions were taken, leading up to the removal of Maduro, and immoral measures are likely to continue, both from the United States and from various Venezuelan replacement governments.
b) Trump’s actions have been some mix of unlawful and unconstitutional, to what degree you can debate.
c) In expected value terms, the people of Venezuela are now much better off.
It can and should be debated how much a) and b) should be weighted against c). But to deny c), or even to fail to mention it, is, I think, quite delusional.
Effective Altruists, are you paying attention?
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2026-01-07 01:02:10
1. 54 observations about Mexico.
2. What do economists mean when they say identification?
3. “Is the European Union now the world’s most underrated libertarian project?”
4. LLAMAS LLAMAS LLAMAS (music from Mexico).
5. Christina Cacioppo reading from 2026. And here is Klara Feenstra.
6. Scott Sumner on neoconservatism.
7. Long-term Treasuries have been losing their safe haven status.
8. The must-see art exhibits of 2026.
9. Matt Lakeman notes on Afghanistan.
The post Tuesday assorted links appeared first on Marginal REVOLUTION.