Eric Crampton
@ericcrampton.bsky.social
Chief Economist at the NZ Initiative.
Adjunct Senior Fellow with the Department of Economics at @ucnz
Squatting here and at @EricCrampton@mastodon.social in case Twitter ever finally sinks.
Adjunct Senior Fellow with the Department of Economics at @ucnz
Squatting here and at @EricCrampton@mastodon.social in case Twitter ever finally sinks.
Other funny part I didn't get to in the column here.
So Treasury, partially on lobbying from environmentalists, changed its cost-benefit guidance to set a 2% discount rate for 'non-commercial' projects, 8% for commercial.
Roads aren't considered commercial.
But KiwiRail is an SOE.
So Treasury, partially on lobbying from environmentalists, changed its cost-benefit guidance to set a 2% discount rate for 'non-commercial' projects, 8% for commercial.
Roads aren't considered commercial.
But KiwiRail is an SOE.
Opinion: Critics wanted to reassess projects' merits to get environmental initiatives approved; instead they've ended up with more roads, writes Eric Crampton.
Be careful what you wish for – new cost-benefit analysis paves paradise
newsroom.co.nz
November 9, 2025 at 7:36 PM
Other funny part I didn't get to in the column here.
So Treasury, partially on lobbying from environmentalists, changed its cost-benefit guidance to set a 2% discount rate for 'non-commercial' projects, 8% for commercial.
Roads aren't considered commercial.
But KiwiRail is an SOE.
So Treasury, partially on lobbying from environmentalists, changed its cost-benefit guidance to set a 2% discount rate for 'non-commercial' projects, 8% for commercial.
Roads aren't considered commercial.
But KiwiRail is an SOE.
Reposted by Eric Crampton
Oil is the most Lovecraftian thing that actually exists.
You're telling me that there's a black ichor under the earth made from the ancient dead, whose burning can realize all the dreams of man, but only at the price of slowly returning the earth to its primordial state?
You're telling me that there's a black ichor under the earth made from the ancient dead, whose burning can realize all the dreams of man, but only at the price of slowly returning the earth to its primordial state?
November 6, 2025 at 9:38 PM
Oil is the most Lovecraftian thing that actually exists.
You're telling me that there's a black ichor under the earth made from the ancient dead, whose burning can realize all the dreams of man, but only at the price of slowly returning the earth to its primordial state?
You're telling me that there's a black ichor under the earth made from the ancient dead, whose burning can realize all the dreams of man, but only at the price of slowly returning the earth to its primordial state?
1. I didn't know this;
2. This guy should have been named Ransom E.O. Speedwagon, not Robert.
2. This guy should have been named Ransom E.O. Speedwagon, not Robert.
November 2, 2025 at 10:22 PM
1. I didn't know this;
2. This guy should have been named Ransom E.O. Speedwagon, not Robert.
2. This guy should have been named Ransom E.O. Speedwagon, not Robert.
This week's column in The Post gave me an excuse to email Joe Bennett for comment.
An illicit cigarette vendor on Facebook Marketplace is purporting to be selling cartons of Bennett's book about bullshitting.
"That's wonderful. Double Happiness as double irony."
www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3608...
An illicit cigarette vendor on Facebook Marketplace is purporting to be selling cartons of Bennett's book about bullshitting.
"That's wonderful. Double Happiness as double irony."
www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3608...
November 2, 2025 at 9:33 PM
This week's column in The Post gave me an excuse to email Joe Bennett for comment.
An illicit cigarette vendor on Facebook Marketplace is purporting to be selling cartons of Bennett's book about bullshitting.
"That's wonderful. Double Happiness as double irony."
www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3608...
An illicit cigarette vendor on Facebook Marketplace is purporting to be selling cartons of Bennett's book about bullshitting.
"That's wonderful. Double Happiness as double irony."
www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3608...
Great piece from @joelmacmanus.bsky.social .
Inside the Canadian apartments redefining indigenous housing
Inside the Canadian apartments redefining indigenous housing
Joel MacManus visits Vancouver, where a First Nation is building a massive complex of apartment towers on its reserve land, with no city council approval required. Could this be the future of iwi-led housing in Aotearoa?...
thespinoff.co.nz
November 2, 2025 at 9:28 PM
Great piece from @joelmacmanus.bsky.social .
Reposted by Eric Crampton
LOSING MY MIND AT THE PHONE NUMBER ON THIS BUS IN FRONT OF ME
October 11, 2025 at 12:47 AM
LOSING MY MIND AT THE PHONE NUMBER ON THIS BUS IN FRONT OF ME
October 11, 2025 at 9:47 AM
Reposted by Eric Crampton
BREAKING: Friday night massacre underway at CDC. Doznes of "disease detectives," high-level scientists, entire Washington staff and editors of the MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report) have all been RIFed and received the following notice:
October 11, 2025 at 2:10 AM
BREAKING: Friday night massacre underway at CDC. Doznes of "disease detectives," high-level scientists, entire Washington staff and editors of the MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report) have all been RIFed and received the following notice:
My piece in today's Herald goes through one on the lessons from Canada's path to greater First Nations autonomy: starting small and learning as you go can have a lot of merit.
www.nzherald.co.nz/business/the...
www.nzherald.co.nz/business/the...
October 1, 2025 at 10:06 PM
My piece in today's Herald goes through one on the lessons from Canada's path to greater First Nations autonomy: starting small and learning as you go can have a lot of merit.
www.nzherald.co.nz/business/the...
www.nzherald.co.nz/business/the...
Reposted by Eric Crampton
WOW. Remember this May video of a US citizen wrestled to the ground by ICE agents and detained for an hour despite having a valid REAL ID?
It gets worse. Two weeks later, ICE did it AGAIN — handcuffed him and detained him for 20 minutes despite his REAL ID. Now the Institute for Justice is suing.
It gets worse. Two weeks later, ICE did it AGAIN — handcuffed him and detained him for 20 minutes despite his REAL ID. Now the Institute for Justice is suing.
September 30, 2025 at 9:25 PM
WOW. Remember this May video of a US citizen wrestled to the ground by ICE agents and detained for an hour despite having a valid REAL ID?
It gets worse. Two weeks later, ICE did it AGAIN — handcuffed him and detained him for 20 minutes despite his REAL ID. Now the Institute for Justice is suing.
It gets worse. Two weeks later, ICE did it AGAIN — handcuffed him and detained him for 20 minutes despite his REAL ID. Now the Institute for Justice is suing.
Reposted by Eric Crampton
Notably this suit was filed by the libertarian Institute for Justice
New IJ lawsuit filed today challenging ICE raids of construction sites, wherein ICE detains American citizens in AL, rejects their proof of citizenship, and holds them without PC.
Worth a read, and more evidence of the wide gulf b/w what SCOTUS says is happening and what is actually happening.
Worth a read, and more evidence of the wide gulf b/w what SCOTUS says is happening and what is actually happening.
ij.org
September 30, 2025 at 9:11 PM
Notably this suit was filed by the libertarian Institute for Justice
Something as simple as moving a watertank on a marae can mean having to beg council permission.
Meanwhile, Canadian First Nations are building on their own land, under their own jurisdiction, needing the permission of no one but themselves.
I think we have something to learn.
Thread:
Meanwhile, Canadian First Nations are building on their own land, under their own jurisdiction, needing the permission of no one but themselves.
I think we have something to learn.
Thread:
September 30, 2025 at 9:42 PM
Something as simple as moving a watertank on a marae can mean having to beg council permission.
Meanwhile, Canadian First Nations are building on their own land, under their own jurisdiction, needing the permission of no one but themselves.
I think we have something to learn.
Thread:
Meanwhile, Canadian First Nations are building on their own land, under their own jurisdiction, needing the permission of no one but themselves.
I think we have something to learn.
Thread:
Reposted by Eric Crampton
8/ Kwak Tae-hwan, former president of the Korea Institute for National Unification, writes that the sight of the workers "being transported in handcuffs and shackles shocked South Korean society, and anti-American sentiment is rapidly spreading."
September 16, 2025 at 9:30 PM
8/ Kwak Tae-hwan, former president of the Korea Institute for National Unification, writes that the sight of the workers "being transported in handcuffs and shackles shocked South Korean society, and anti-American sentiment is rapidly spreading."
Reposted by Eric Crampton
7/ The government has already said that it will take unspecified action against the US if the full investigation identifies human rights violations against its citizens. It is under pressure from the public and media to hold the US government to account over the incident.
September 16, 2025 at 9:30 PM
7/ The government has already said that it will take unspecified action against the US if the full investigation identifies human rights violations against its citizens. It is under pressure from the public and media to hold the US government to account over the incident.
Watch for this in New Zealand as well if Luxon goes ahead with age-gating social media.
pcmag.com/news/bluesky-blocks-mississippi-users-instead-of-making-them-prove-theyre-over
pcmag.com/news/bluesky-blocks-mississippi-users-instead-of-making-them-prove-theyre-over
Bluesky Blocks Mississippi Users Instead of Making Them Prove They’re Over 18
The X alternative says the breadth of the state’s age-verification law left it no option.
pcmag.com
August 25, 2025 at 10:09 PM
Watch for this in New Zealand as well if Luxon goes ahead with age-gating social media.
pcmag.com/news/bluesky-blocks-mississippi-users-instead-of-making-them-prove-theyre-over
pcmag.com/news/bluesky-blocks-mississippi-users-instead-of-making-them-prove-theyre-over
Reposted by Eric Crampton
August 19, 2025 at 2:48 AM
If you're learning to sound-out words in English, start with primers that focus on regular English words and avoid both irregular English words and non-English words.
Disappointing when people can only see this in culture-war terms.
www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3607...
Disappointing when people can only see this in culture-war terms.
www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3607...
August 19, 2025 at 1:12 AM
If you're learning to sound-out words in English, start with primers that focus on regular English words and avoid both irregular English words and non-English words.
Disappointing when people can only see this in culture-war terms.
www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3607...
Disappointing when people can only see this in culture-war terms.
www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3607...
Reposted by Eric Crampton
The ID check system that b416.co.nz wants to implement in New Zealand means the end of privacy online for everyone.
It doesn’t protect minors, it’s a crackdown on the internet, driven by a moral panic about “the kids these days.”
www.newyorker.com/culture/infi...
It doesn’t protect minors, it’s a crackdown on the internet, driven by a moral panic about “the kids these days.”
www.newyorker.com/culture/infi...
Before16
b416.co.nz
August 7, 2025 at 12:14 AM
The ID check system that b416.co.nz wants to implement in New Zealand means the end of privacy online for everyone.
It doesn’t protect minors, it’s a crackdown on the internet, driven by a moral panic about “the kids these days.”
www.newyorker.com/culture/infi...
It doesn’t protect minors, it’s a crackdown on the internet, driven by a moral panic about “the kids these days.”
www.newyorker.com/culture/infi...
Reposted by Eric Crampton
Opening sentence is a cracker:
"I wonder whether Britain’s new role in the world is to show others what not to do."
"I wonder whether Britain’s new role in the world is to show others what not to do."
It was always nuts to follow Australia into age-gating the Internet without waiting to see how things pan out there. Their regime takes effect in December.
Fortunately, the UK is showing us, right now.
Maybe we shouldn't do this.
In today's Post.
www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3607...
Fortunately, the UK is showing us, right now.
Maybe we shouldn't do this.
In today's Post.
www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3607...
August 10, 2025 at 11:18 PM
Opening sentence is a cracker:
"I wonder whether Britain’s new role in the world is to show others what not to do."
"I wonder whether Britain’s new role in the world is to show others what not to do."
It was always nuts to follow Australia into age-gating the Internet without waiting to see how things pan out there. Their regime takes effect in December.
Fortunately, the UK is showing us, right now.
Maybe we shouldn't do this.
In today's Post.
www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3607...
Fortunately, the UK is showing us, right now.
Maybe we shouldn't do this.
In today's Post.
www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3607...
August 10, 2025 at 10:49 PM
It was always nuts to follow Australia into age-gating the Internet without waiting to see how things pan out there. Their regime takes effect in December.
Fortunately, the UK is showing us, right now.
Maybe we shouldn't do this.
In today's Post.
www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3607...
Fortunately, the UK is showing us, right now.
Maybe we shouldn't do this.
In today's Post.
www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3607...
I argued at Newsroom for a fast-track setup for enabling large-scale supermarket entry. Simultaneous plan change, consents, and overseas investment approval for a set of sites.
I'd noted Kaufland's exit from Australia due to zoning issues there.
On that:
plannedchaos.substack.com/p/its-the-pl...
I'd noted Kaufland's exit from Australia due to zoning issues there.
On that:
plannedchaos.substack.com/p/its-the-pl...
August 3, 2025 at 8:57 PM
I argued at Newsroom for a fast-track setup for enabling large-scale supermarket entry. Simultaneous plan change, consents, and overseas investment approval for a set of sites.
I'd noted Kaufland's exit from Australia due to zoning issues there.
On that:
plannedchaos.substack.com/p/its-the-pl...
I'd noted Kaufland's exit from Australia due to zoning issues there.
On that:
plannedchaos.substack.com/p/its-the-pl...
Reposted by Eric Crampton
Canadians are really mad at the United States, up to the point that they’re ready to accept harmful measures *for themselves* (76%!) so that they can retaliate
Asked of those who say Canada should counter tariff:
"What if the US increases their tariffs further?"
Use counter-tariffs: 95%
Don't use them: 5%
"What if it causes financial suffering to Canadians?"
Use counter-tariffs: 76%
Don't use them: 24%
Angus Reid / Aug 1, 2025 / n=887 / Online
"What if the US increases their tariffs further?"
Use counter-tariffs: 95%
Don't use them: 5%
"What if it causes financial suffering to Canadians?"
Use counter-tariffs: 76%
Don't use them: 24%
Angus Reid / Aug 1, 2025 / n=887 / Online
"Canada should respond to American tariffs with..."
Counter tariffs equal to whatever the US imposes: 59%
Counter tariffs less than what the US imposes: 8%
No counter tariffs: 18%
Unsure: 16%
Angus Reid / Aug 1, 2025 / n=1333 / Online
Counter tariffs equal to whatever the US imposes: 59%
Counter tariffs less than what the US imposes: 8%
No counter tariffs: 18%
Unsure: 16%
Angus Reid / Aug 1, 2025 / n=1333 / Online
August 2, 2025 at 5:59 AM
Canadians are really mad at the United States, up to the point that they’re ready to accept harmful measures *for themselves* (76%!) so that they can retaliate
Reposted by Eric Crampton
I’m wondering how long it will take to repair the relationship between Canada and the United States
A long time, I assume
A long time, I assume
"Would you prefer to see Canada take a (X) approach to trade negotiations with the US?"
Hard - Refuse concessions even if it makes the relationship worse: 69% (+6)
Soft - Make concessions to keep a good relationship: 31% (-6)
Angus Reid / Aug 1, 2025 / n=1333 / Online
(% Change w Jul 13, 2025)
Hard - Refuse concessions even if it makes the relationship worse: 69% (+6)
Soft - Make concessions to keep a good relationship: 31% (-6)
Angus Reid / Aug 1, 2025 / n=1333 / Online
(% Change w Jul 13, 2025)
August 2, 2025 at 5:57 AM
I’m wondering how long it will take to repair the relationship between Canada and the United States
A long time, I assume
A long time, I assume
August 1, 2025 at 1:45 AM
Reposted by Eric Crampton
Motherfucking wind farms…
July 30, 2025 at 5:02 PM
Motherfucking wind farms…