It’s the first day of August, which means that the blog is officially on hiatus for the next month. But before we hit the beach (library) and catch some rays (plan our fall schedule), a few brief announcements.
A New Primer on Climate Change
Feeling the summer heat? You might want to check out our new primer on The Neoliberal Economics of Climate Change. In this primer, Lexi Smith covers how neoliberal economists model climate change, outlines critical research on neoliberal “solutions” to the climate crisis, and identifies scholars developing alternative strategies for addressing climate change.
Our primers aim to provide broad introductions to topics of relevance for LPE students and readers. Previous primers cover Neoliberalism, the Progressive Tradition, and Legal Realism. If you have ideas for other topics that we should cover, please submit your ideas here.
The 10 Most Read Posts of this Past Year
They say absence makes the heart grow fonder. But if you find yourself pining for LPE content during the dog days of summer, you can revisit some of our most loved posts from the past year.
10. Let’s Politicize Cost-Benefit Analysis – Elizabeth Popp Berman
As part of our symposium on cost-benefit analysis, Elizabeth Popp Berman argues that rethinking CBA within an LPE framework will require not only critique of its technical assumptions, but a willingness to think strategically about when and how it should be deployed.
9. The Long History of Anti-CRT Politics – Aziz Rana
Aziz Rana shows that an appeal to American universalism, along with an explicit focus on public education, has been perhaps the dominant way of articulating white resistance to racial reform over the past century.
8. Monetary Power and the Core Periphery-Dynamics of Inflation – Karina Patrício & John Hogan Morris
As part of our wildly popular series on inflation, Karina Patrício & John Hogan Morris explain how the international monetary system prioritizes the needs of the global core at the expense of some of the most vulnerable people in the world.
7. Let Them Eat Cake: Inflation Beyond Monetary Policy – Devika Dutt
In another entry on inflation, Devika Dutt argues that central banks in developing countries must look beyond monetary policy to manage price increases in food and energy.
6. The Role of Courts in American Political Economy – Kathleen Thelen and Brian Highsmith
Kathleen Thelen and Brian Highsmith explain how the tremendous—practically unreviewable—power exercised by our judiciary is unique among rich democracies, and serves to make the Court a structurally conservative institution.
5. Cost-Benefit Analysis at a Crossroads – Frank Pasquale
Kicking off our symposium on the subject, Frank Pasquale discusses the promise, the perils, and the possible future of cost-benefit analysis.
4. Law and Political Economy: A (Very) Brief Field Guide for 1Ls – Sam Aber and Caroline Parker
Two 3L LPE fans (and Blog editors) reflect on what LPE has to offer to new law students. Appropriate for readers of all ages.
3. “In a Good Economy Homelessness Goes Up”: Inflation and the Housing Question – David Stein
We told you the inflation series was wildly popular. David Stein explores how the state can ensure that renters don’t get crushed as workers during a recession, and then crushed again with housing costs as the economy recovers.
2. The Antitrust Case Against Gig Economy Labor Platforms – Marshall Steinbaum
Marshall Steinbaum lays out the case that the gig economy relies on vertical restraints to inhibit competition in service of higher profits. From the page to the stage, the argument is currently being tested in court.
In the wake of Dobbs, many suggested that tribal lands might serve as an abortion “safe harbor.” In our most read post of the year, several experts on indigenous law and policy explained why this proposal overlooks important legal, financial, political, and ethical considerations.
And if you’re still thirsting for more LPE #content, you can always check out our most read posts from 2017-2018, 2019, and 2020.
Two New Editors
Finally, today is also the first day for two new Lead Editors.
Matt Buck, a rising 2L at YLS and senior fellow at the American Economic Liberties Project, will focus primarily on matters of antitrust law and antimonopoly policy.
Brett Davidson, a rising 2L at UCLA and former co-director of the Connecticut Bail Fund, will focus primarily on LPE approaches to criminal law and the practice of lawyering itself.
