Price Fixing and Sotheby's
The recent verdict for criminal price-fixing against 76-year-old William Taubman, the former CEO of Sotheby's, has destabilized the world of high-priced auctions. But is he really a criminal? … more
Keep Cutting Taxes
Mackinac Center President Lawrence Reed urges the Michigan Legislature to not only keep on track with scheduled tax cuts but to enlarge them to help revive a flagging Michigan economy. … more
Is Christmas Inefficient?
A Mackinac Center adjunct scholar takes on one Scrooge economist's contention that gift-giving results in a waste of economic resources. Merry Christmas to all from the Mackinac Center staff! … more
Fighting Statism at the State Level
"Think of the Mackinac Center as one of the chief laboratories for the laboratories of democracy," writes Detroit News columnist Tom Bray in a recent article for OpinionJournal.com. … more
Tolerating Zero-Tolerance
Are so-called "zero-tolerance" policies effective in reducing violence in public schools? … more
Making the Case for Liberty
Making the case for liberty "stick" requires a patient, long-term commitment to ideas and principles over the instant gratification of short-term obsessions with elections and legislation. … more
Does the MEAP Measure Up?
Mackinac Center education experts analyze the effectiveness of the Michigan Education Assessment Program. … more
Michigan Schools in Debt
Despite regular funding increases since the passage of Proposal A, Michigan public schools' borrowing is at an all-time high. … more
Corn Flakes and Greatness
Learn the story of a great Michigan entrepreneur and philanthropist, Will Kellogg, in this classic Mackinac Center Viewpoint. … more
The Myth of "Predatory Pricing"
Over 40 years ago, Professor John McGee demolished a popular economic myth-but the myth persists. … more
Grant Helps Launch New Initiative
The Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation of Midland has awarded grants totaling $480,000 to the Mackinac Center for Public Policy to help launch a new public policy initiative and support the Center's general operations.
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"Proposal A+" for Michigan Schools
U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra joins the Mackinac Center in calling for greater school choice for Michigan parents in a recent Detroit News op-ed. … more
War and the Growth of Government
After a crisis, a government inflated with "emergency measures" almost never shrinks to its pre-crisis size. That's why the time to trim the bloated federal establishment is now. … more
Charles Dickens and Child Labor
The miserable lot of children during the British Industrial Revolution is a major theme in many Dickens' classics including "A Christmas Carol." Was capitalism to blame for the misery? … more
Public Schools and Choice
How is Michigan's public schools-of-choice law working? Michigan Education Report investigates. … more
Lack of School Choice Is the Problem
A privatized school monopoly is no better than a government school monopoly. … more
State's Broadband Plan A Bad Idea
The state's plan to wire all of Michigan, including sparsely populated rural areas, with high-speed Internet cable is redundant at best and harmful to the telecommunications market at worst. … more
Preserving History at Bayonet Point
Preserving historic buildings is a noble endeavor, but it is best accomplished using voluntary means, not the coercion of government "historic district commissions." … more
The New Three Rs
The Mackinac Center's new director of science, environment, and technology policy explains the public schools' new Three Rs: Recycling, Rationing, and Regulation. … more
Church and Sprawl
The Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit has come out swinging against "urban sprawl," but church officials could better serve Michigan citizens by engaging in a balanced debate on the issue of growth management. … more
How Much "Should" Gas Cost?
Michigan Attorney General Jennifer Granholm's crusade against gas stations that raised their prices after Sept. 11 is the wrong solution in search of a nonexistent problem. … more
How to Save Detroit
Former Indianopolis Mayor and current Bush advisor Stephen Goldsmith has some advice for financially troubled cities like Detroit in this Michigan Privatization Report article from 1998. … more
War, Freedom, and Government
Find out how U.S. soldiers overcame the bureaucratic bungling of a Michigan native to win the Spanish-American War in this classic Mackinac Center Viewpoint. … more
Profit Motives and Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is a perfect time to reflect on how free markets help to deliver the bounty. A Happy Thanksgiving to you from the staff of the Mackinac Center! … more
Gasoline and "Gouging"
Is Michigan Attorney General Jennifer Granholm right to pursue charges of "price gouging" against gas stations that raised prices in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks? … more
Charity and Society
Mackinac Center President Lawrence Reed analyzes what it means when entrepreneurs are admonished to "give something back to society." … more
Managing Public School Debt
The Detroit Free Press reports that Michigan has "one of the highest public school debts in the country." Three years ago, a Mackinac Center scholar recommended responsible borrowing practices for schools. … more
Four Principles and a Challenge
Mackinac Center President Lawrence Reed challenges State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Watkins to embrace fundamental reforms in public education at a recent charter school conference. … more
Tocqueville's Warning
Inspirational remarks about the role of state-based think tanks as champions of the free society. Remarks from the 9th annual State Policy Network meeting, held Oct. 6 in Boulder, Colo. … more
School Choice--in Michigan and Beyond
Should Oklahoma expand school choice for its students? Sooner State legislators ask Mackinac Center Director of Education Policy Matthew Brouillette for the facts. … more
A Tale of Two Privatizing Cities
Two mid-Michigan cities, Flint and Saginaw, are quietly using Mackinac Center recommendations from Michigan Privatization Report to improve the quality of municipal services in the face of budgetary challenges. … more
Charter Schools and Accountability
Director of Education Policy Matthew Brouillette explains at a recent conference of charter school officials how charter schools must serve two masters-government and the education marketplace. … more
Repeal the Prevailing Wage Act
Michigan's Prevailing Wage Act of 1965 is a costly piece of special-interest legislation that forces public schools to waste millions of dollars each year on inflated construction costs. … more
Government and Accountability
Michiganvotes.org, a new web site that posts plain-English descriptions of every bill, amendment, and vote, is enhancing state government's already admirable record of accountability. … more
Improving Public Schools
Over the past decade, the state of Michigan has laid some important groundwork for improving public education, but the continued lackluster performance of many schools argues the need for more choice and competition in the system. … more
Cruel and Unusual
State legislators should reform harsh "mandatory minimum" sentencing laws that dramatically lengthen prison sentences for many first-time drug offenders--while doing almost nothing to punish the "kingpins" the laws were supposed to target. … more
Proposal A and School Funding
An influential Lansing newsletter asks the Mackinac Center about school funding, Proposal A, and property taxes. … more
State Should Mind Its Own E-Business
The Michigan Economic Development Corporation is moving forward with its plan to "wire" the state for high-speed, "broadband," Internet access. Mackinac Center scholars explain why this is a bad idea. … more
Supply and Demand and Labor
A student Asks the Economist to explain how the law of supply and demand functions in the labor market. … more
Teachers Declare Independence
Teachers at Island City Academy, an Eaton Rapids charter school, voted 12-1 Monday to oust the Michigan Education Association (MEA) as their collective bargaining agent.
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Seven Pillars of Sound Policy
Mackinac Center President Lawrence Reed's speech to the Economic Club of Detroit is a "dismal science" guide for policy makers. … more
Reining in Ritalin
The Mackinac Center looks at the powerful drug Ritalin, given to schoolchildren diagnosed with a controversial "disease," in this Oct. 28 Detroit News op-ed. … more
Land Use and State Planning
A Mackinac Center scholar explains the deficiencies inherent in government-directed land-use planning. … more
Tax Cuts: Tonic for an Ailing Economy
Oct. 23, 2001 testimony of Mackinac Center President Lawrence Reed before the Michigan House Commerce Committee and Senate Economic Development Committee. … more
Cut Taxes to Boost the Economy
The Michigan Legislature takes up a package of tax cuts recommended by the Mackinac Center and Chamber of Commerce.
(President Reed's testimony will be available online tomorrow.) … more
Education Innovation
Parents of students who struggle with traditional school environments or teaching methods often believe the public sector is the only place where they can get help. But that is not the case.
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Public Schools and Local Control
A 25-year veteran school teacher explains why maintaining local control of schools is vital if public education is going to improve. … more
A "Maximum Wage" Law?
A student asks what would happen if the government imposed a "maximum wage" law to prevent employers from offering job applicants "too much" money. … more
Why Energy Conservation Fails
As the president and Congress debate energy policy, they would be wise to note that while conservation can have some benefits, reducing the total amount of energy we use isn't one of them.
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See How Your Legislators Vote
A recent Detroit News editorial encourages citizens to check out the Mackinac Center's MichiganVotes.org, a "good bit of public service and a convenient way for voters to stay informed" in the democratic process.
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