The Questionable Role of Quantitative Methods in Economics

Most economists are in agreement that, through statistical and mathematical methods, one can organize historical data into a useful body of information, which can serve as the basis both for economic theory and assessments of the state of the economy. It is also believed that the knowledge secured from the data is tentative since it is not possible to know all the information and future empirical information might falsify previous theory.

Selling the Public Lands

Senator Mike Lee has been making waves recently with his support of new potential legislation that would mandate sale of a small amount of land which is currently owned and managed by the federal government. The idea behind the proposal is to free up space for housing development in states where the federal government currently owns large shares of the land. In Senator Lee’s words, “...turning federal liabilities into taxpayer value.”