Regulation and Policy Books

As a businessman, lawyer and former banker I was fascinated by the six case studies. My academic side was awed by the theoretical mission. The chapter on the origins of offshore finance had me emailing my banking friends to say "Did you know that..." The book really shed light on what is going on in the business-government world. Makes me wish I had pursued political science instead of business and law! Or, as Murphy points out, they should be seen as overlapping, not separate. I was less familiar with some of the concepts in the academic and theoretical chapters (1 & 8), such as transaction costs and asset specificity, but Murphy explains them well and makes me see the world differently. Anyway, a good read. Highly recommended for anyone who wants to understand how globalization affects so many aspects of our lives -- aspects that most people are not even aware of.

Dale Murphy's "The Structure of Regulatory Competition" should be required reading for anyone interested in corporate social responsibility, globalization, international law and regulatory structure. The book is both smart and extremely readable, dealing with complex subjects in accessible prose.

The case studies are particularly useful. Examining a diverse set of cases such as CFC production, offshore finance, infant formula, dolphin-tuna debates, etc., Murphy is able to weave an argument that predicts international political outcomes by attacking cases that vary. His revisiting of the dolphin-tuna wars is particularly well-done as it provides a new perspective on an oft-misunderstood case.

If you want to understand globalization beyond the sound bytes and headlines, definitely take a look.

There is an assumption that gets rehashed quite often that firms seek countries that have lax regulations in order to take advantage of low government involvement. The result, so the assumption goes, is a "race to the bottom" between countries seeking FDI, foreign exchange, etc. Professor Dale Murphy illustrates quite effectively that this assumption is not always the case. As expected, the reality is quite complex. The good news is that Murphy navigates the complexity with ease and relays the true story in accessible prose.

This is one of those books that specialists and non-specialists alike will find extremely valuable.

I teach a PhD seminar in International Political Economy and was delighted to discover this gem of a new book, in time to order for my syllabus next fall. Rare for political science, I enjoyed reading it and couldn't put it down. My own rave review and synopsis will follow shortly, but for now here is what Robert O. Keohane (Duke, Political Science), David Vogel (Berkeley, Political Science and Haas School of Business), and Kenneth A. Oye (MIT, Political Science) have written about this fine piece of scholarship.

Robert O. Keohane: "THE STRUCTURE OF REGULATORY COMPETITION indicates how important the strategies of large corporations are for global and national regulatory policy. Norms and ideas sometimes play a role, but to explain outcomes, Dale Murphy reminds us, we have to understand material interests."

David Vogel: "A first-rate contribution to both research and theory on how economic interests affect regulatory policy-making in a global economy. Murphy makes a persuasive case for the critical role played by industry structures in shaping patterns of both international and domestic regulation. This is an important book whose original analysis of the dynamics of both the 'Delaware' and 'California' effects deserves to be widely discussed and debated."

Kenneth A. Oye: "This book is a major contribution to debates over globalization. Some argue that integration spawns competitions in regulatory laxity. Others maintain that integration encourages upward regulatory harmonization. Murphy transcends this debate, identifying conditions that explain when regulations will drop toward a lowest common denominator, when regulations will converge upward, and when regulatory differences will persist. Murphy presents meticulously researched cases on regulations governing environmental performance, shipping registration and flags-of-convenience, labor standards, and capital adequacy standards. These case studies are theoretically insightful and empirically rich fables of globalization, complete with morals. Essential reading for an era when international trade conflicts center on domestic regulatory differences."

Built around a creative yet rigorous theoretical framework of investigation, Murphy delves into the details of international political economy. He offers a clear understanding of how globalization has changed the dymamic interaction between firms and public policies. This book is a refreshing break from much jargon-laden and self-referential academic work.


Here's what John H. Jackson, University Professor at Georgetown Law School, says about this book:

"Dale Murphy has taken the subject another big step forward, by choosing a new, effective, and highly empirical approach. ... The explanation bridges studies of law, economics, political science, and business strategy. It is a fascinating study which closely examines the real world, and is an important contribution to the literature of international economic rules.

"Professor Murphy successfully challenges several orthodoxies in international political economy and law and offers a new theoretical understanding based on firms' regulatory preferences. ... These case-studies -- some familiar, some new -- also illuminate controversies over 'globalization' and responses to them such as corporate social responsibility and public-private partnerships.

"The compelling historical narratives draw on the author's work experience in the private sector, government, and development agencies in over 30 countries, as well as his academic training. Braving provocative questions, the book shines light on the black box of policy-making and analyzes the fundamentally important role that firms play in shaping regulations.

"It makes a significant theoretical contribution to the field in the analysis and differentiation of firms' varied regulatory preferences, rather than treating these as monotonic. Not content with vague generalizations about 'market forces' or 'the private sector', the book burrows beneath superficial press releases and digs deep into firms' strategies and the political process by which regulations emerge. This painstaking research pays off both in the insights it generates and the robustness of the arguments."

Check out Dr Trixie above. Then read the book--after you buy it. Then check out the rest of the works of Fridson, as clear a writer on finance and political economy as there is. Blessed with ironic detachment from and a forgiving heart for the stupid and greedy who make our policies and populate our markets.

Great text from Fridson - a must-read for anyone with any interest in the inner workings of the U.S. government's involvement in economy. Fridson exposes inefficiencies all over the place without sparing either side of the aisle. The writing is well-versed, but at the same time extremely easy to follow.

Fridson is amazing. The research here is exhaustive, but at the same time highly accessible and enlightening.

Fridson quotes everyone from classical economists such as Ricardo to contemporary politicians in showing how unwarranted intrusions by the government into our lives invariably makes us much worse off. For those who love to debate, this book is a must. Fridson uncovers the various myths about Ethanol, payola, and our "low" savings rate. An essential book.

Citizens, rejoice! Marty Fridson, the D'Artagnan of finance, is back with his sharp and delicate sword, this time taking on the world of subsidy. Fridson is the eminently readable writer, historian, and Wall Street financial whiz whose books "It Was A Very Good Year" and "How To Be A Billionaire" offer wicked glimpses into the world of wealth accumulation, happily skewering the institutions from which all our rich fantasies spring. He now takes aim at the perennial use of government (read taxpayers') money to support troubled and misguided programs - Social Security! The FDIC! Fannie Mae! - which, he says, are better off left to the self-correcting forces of the marketplace.

Fridson gives lucid histories of government intervention - starting in 1867 with campaign-finance reform - showing that regulations and subsidized programs, dear to our hearts and psyches, that were created to reduce disparities in wealth and income, have generally achieved the opposite effect.

Politically-motivated bailouts -- aid to farmers, rent control, and property tax breaks for businesses -- create artificial shortages and gluts, making some people (usually the upper tax brackets: agribusiness, landlords, and CEOs) better off, at the cost of making everyone else worse - locally and globally. And the only people these subsidies invariably benefit are the politicians, who promote them to grease whichever wheel of the voters' cart is squeaking the loudest.

Market failure in any sector means disparity: goods and services are not allocated efficiently. Fridson says that government intervention in the economy is only appropriate when the market fails to produce an optimal outcome - in education, for example, where the need for skilled workers outweighs individuals' demands.

Direct income support is also necessary for workers who can't find employment, or who are unable to participate in the labor market. But other subsidies, protections, and regulations (like restrictions on short-selling and margin buying, or federal assistance to the big mortgage lenders, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) generally benefit the privileged (brokers; middle- and upper-income home buyers), exclude low-to-moderate-income groups, and contribute to the sequestration of capital in the top ten percent. Fridson provides plenty of credible, readable data to back his points.

"Unwarranted Intrusions" is so sharp that it's painless; this book makes reading the political news fun again. Buy two copies - one for yourself and one for your favorite Congressperson.

I agree with nearly everything that the author says. His arguments against the economic effectiveness of government subsidies and intervention in the markets appeal to my libertarian streak and it is well known that many (most?) of the government programs are economically counterproductive. Some are downright silly. One of the most ridiculous, primarily because it went all the way to the United States Supreme Court, is the case of Karen Finley. She was an "artist" whose primary area of expertise was smearing her naked body with food. In special instances, she raised money by having people pay to lick the food, primarily chocolate, off her body. When her NEA grant application was rejected, Finley sued. So silly, yet so significant. For the real issue was twofold.

*) Should the federal government use tax money to fund art?
*) If the answer to the first question is yes, what are the bounds on the art?

And this also raises a more general question concerning the use of public money to benefit small groups, the often-reviled "special interests." For if the federal government could not stop funding the fringe artists, there is no hope of stopping the real expensive cases of corporate welfare.
One of the greatest is the enormous subsidy paid to American farmers to raise surplus food. Not only is it an expensive and deceptive program, it helps to keep subsistence farmers in other countries in poverty. As Fridson points out, while politicians demand that the program be kept alive to preserve the family farm, the reality is that there really is no such thing anymore. Billions of dollars in payments go to large corporate farms, which are the only ones that can grow the cheap food demanded by society at a price that it will accept. The hidden costs paid by the generic taxpayer are rarely factored in, and when they are they are conveniently ignored by the policy makers.
Fridson also debunks the so-called "ethanol solution." Namely, take all of the surplus corn, convert it into ethanol, use it as fuel for automobiles and free the United States from having to import foreign oil. Tax credits and other gifts are used to promote the use of ethanol, with the thought being that farm prices will rise. The reality is that the farmer gets very little of the benefit, the bulk going to the distiller and the retailer. In fact, a Department of Energy estimate stated that every extra dollar of farm income from the use of ethanol costs the taxpayer four. Furthermore, since it takes more energy to produce a gallon of ethanol than can be retrieved from using it, ethanol may actually increase the dependence on foreign oil. Finally, in my home state of Iowa, the bumper stickers praise the use of ethanol, as it is touted as a fuel that burns cleaner. This "fact" has been refuted, although ethanol has some advantages, the different disadvantages mean that overall it pollutes as much as the burning of fossil fuels.
Where I disagree with Fridson is in his unwavering belief in the markets and the thought that people will always act honorably and honestly. As the recent corporate scandals demonstrate, there are crooks in low and high places and only the government can make and enforce the rules that will keep them as honest as possible. However, in general, I agreed with Fridson, all the while knowing how futile the task of trying to change these things for the better is.

The best and most authoritative analysis of why so many workers feel "nervously employed". A scholarly work of great value to all including those eager to take responsibility for their place in a turbulent workplace. It brights attention to the fact that productivity gains have gone to owners of capital not workers creating wealth...a must read!

In this excellent and highly readable book, author Stone shines new light on the structural changes in the modern American employment relationship. Stone's analysis is original and compelling--essential reading for policy makers, scholars and students. Drawing on her expertise as both a labor historian and legal scholar, Stone argues that throughout the twentieth century, employers have encouraged long-term employment relationships through "the use of implicit promises for job security and well-defined paths of career progression." As a result, labor and employment policy have been molded to meet these ends. The problem, according to Stone, is that modern day employment arrangements are no longer driven by stability, but rather by flexibility, as employers seek, for example, to farm out more and more of their core operations to independent contractors and short-term hires. The result is a regulation regime for a vanished era. More than just analysis, From Widgets to Digits, also offers a progressive, concrete program for the workplace, thereby allowing policy to keep pace with the employment revolution.

This is a truly outstanding book. The author, a renowned expert in labor relations, discusses the transformation of the workplace, the increased risks to workers with the changes in health insurance, pensions, and low wages, the decline in unions and the new forms of discrimination. She has lots of good suggestions for reform. It is extremely well-written and thought-provoking.

Amid the endless hype about the "new workplace," it is difficult to grasp the enormous changes that have occured in the world of work over the past quarter century. Katherine Stone's FROM WIDGETS TO DIGITS is an invaluable guide for anyone who wants to understand or to affect the character of labor in the globalizing economy.

The author starts be presenting the historical shift from 19th century artisanal production to 20th century industrial production and the social, political, and legal changes that emerged in response to it. Her presentation of that history provides a model for understanding what she calls "digital production" -- and, even more important, for addressing the issues it poses for the social, political, and legal regulation of work.

The book's power results in part from the fruitful combination of the insights of a labor historian with those of a legal theorist. It also grows from the author's underlying conviction that work relations must be considered not just from the point of view of economic efficiency, but from the point of view of justice.

Readers of "Love the Sin" may also enjoy Naked in Haiti: A sexy morality tale about tourists, prostitutes & politicians. It is about the joys and problems of sex tourism. It skewers sex tourists and politicians alike, though the prostitutes come out looking pretty good (they always do). There is also a religious connection, though it's not central to the plot.

This one is not just for the ivory tower. Topics discussed give a historical perspective on the issues we face today. I found concise useful information and thoroughly enjoyed the read. I give the authors a great deal of credit for giving me a greater insight into sexuality and religion, topics I thought I had rather a good grasp of.
Three Cheers form a fellow sinner!

Though some of the reasoning behind the viewpoints seems weird the book is still good. It take an interesting look at the religious right and how they perceive sex, as well as homosexuality. A read for any uber religious fanatic who thinks that sex is good, as long as it's Christian sex.

In their co-written book, Jakobsen and Pellegrini have presented a compelling account of the enduring role of "sin" in contemporary political discourse, from the Clinton impeachment proceedings to the Christian Coalition's attack on homosexuals.

They point out, among other compelling insights, that the concept of religious tolerance, long viewed as a progressive Enlightenment value, has often justified the very kinds of repression it is intended to prevent by positing an authoritative norm (in the United States, the Judeo-Christian tradition) from which other religious, sexual and political minorities are "permitted" to deviate.

The two authors also draw an extended analogy between freedom of religious and sexual expression, and argue that the Supreme Court, especially in its pivotal 1986 Bower v. Hardwick ruling, has essentially ignored the Constitution on the matter of church-state separation by invoking a general notion of "morality"--thereby reinforcing the dominance of Christian values in America.

Jakobsen and Pellegrini envision a more pluralistic society in which disestablishment of religion and state is pushed to its logical conclusion, and extended to the realm of sexuality. This is an excellent, intelligent book--a must for the scholar and general reader alike interested in religion, politics, and the law.

The 200th anniversary of the adoption of the Constitution resulted in a series of columns by J St. John. These 1787 meetings were secret, no official records were kept. But the notes of James Madison and others survived to reconstruct daily events. The original intent of this meeting was to revise the Articles of Confederation (Appendix 1), but a new Constitution resulted (Appendix 2). There is no index.

Many of the basics were the subject of debate and controversy. Some called the result a "miracle" (p.x), but it shows the power of a committee whose members work to the same ends. This book attempts to portray the meetings as an evolving news story, as it was happening. Most Americans do not understand the Constitution, because it is poorly taught in schools from unclear text books (p.xiv). Deliberate obfuscation? These 230 pages are a remedy. This book will give a short introduction into the daily operations of this historically important event.

The Constitution has endured for over 200 years because it is a framework (p.131), not a detailed plan that can't be adapted to changing situations. The Constitution has endured as long as it is in the interest of "We the People" to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our posterity. The hidden agenda of the convention was to create a strong national government that had veto power over all state laws (5-20-1787). The most important reason was the question of domestic and foreign commerce. Rivalries between the bankers and merchants of the North against the planters of the South prevented Congress from regulating trade (5-23-1787). Both forces would unite against farmers and the common people, and the danger of too much democracy (5-29-1787). The Convention wanted to avoid the failures of the Articles of Confederation. The Confederacy owed [money amount]in debt and needed to find a way to pay off their debts (p.139).

The unlimited powers of the Royal Governors made the delegates fearful of a single executive. The consequences of consolidating power was fatal to ancient republics (6-2-1787). Experience rather than abstract arguments shaped the Convention (6-4-1787). Neither the executive nor the legislature should have absolute power. The big problem was to create a national government that would provide balance between the large and the small states. States would be equally represented in the Senate, the lower House would be directly elected by the people, based on proportion to population. This was the key to creating a new national government (p.110). The Southern states were more numerous and wealthy than the Northern states; their method of computing political representatives won (7-12-1787). The Convention unanimously rejected "wealth" as the basis for representation; they should not fear the growth of population (7-13-1787). The new government would be a compound of national and federal government (7-17-1787). A Supreme Court was established, with lower courts (7-18-1787). A single powerful executive would be elected by the people to control the legislature (7-19-1787). The importance of impeachment was discussed and adopted (7-20-1787). The executive was given a veto (7-21-1787). The Constitution would be ratified by the people, not State Legislatures (7-23-1787). The office of President did not exist under the Confederation (p.133).

Each year in September is a little known holiday known as Constitution Day - timed to be around the close of the Constitutional Convention in September 1787, this day is honoured at the college where I teach by speakers in a special forum, and the gift of pocket versions of the Constitution for all interested students.

However, the Constitution is heavily in the news, more than we often realise. When the election of 2000 was contested, the Constitution became primarily important; it is always in the background of Presidential elections, but this time it came to the forefront. In the current situation between Chief Justices (a relatively rare occurrence in American history), once again the Constitution is big news. We the people are interested, and we the people should be interested. However, we the people often have little concept of how this formative and foundational document came into being. Jeffrey St. John provides an answer to this situation, in very engaging and accessible style.

This is a journal, a day-by-day account, done in a sort of combination of journalistic and court-reporting styles. Of course, we have no direct journal of this sort, as the proceedings of the Constitutional Convention were strictly secret (not the kind of thing that would play out well in our media-saturated world - CSPAN and CNN among others would certainly expect to be there!). Indeed, those who went to the Constitutional Convention in May 1787 were charged with a reformation of the Articles of Confederation, not the drafting of a new Constitution. History had a surprise in store.

This is not the only area of interest. St. John's documentation shows the different influences into the formation of the Constitution - while it is common to look to classical times and contemporary European governments for influences and inspiration, in fact the most memorable words of the Constitution come from the constitution of the Iroquois League, drawn up in 1520, which began with the words 'We the people, in order to form a union...'.

The various federal structures, the separation of state and federal powers and responsibilities, the debates over how representation is carried out (and who gets represented; the issue of slavery was contentious from the start, and one can clearly see the seeds of the Civil War being planted even at the Constitutional Convention) - these are all portrayed with clarity and candour.

The Constitution was not a document that was intended to be from the outset, nor was it passed unanimously (indeed, not all states were represented at all times of the Convention, not all delegates appointed attended, and one state never participated at all). Some of the founding fathers, including Thomas Jefferson, George Washington and Benjamin Franklin, made references to divine intervention being key in the process; Franklin at the end made the warning about the government being a Republic, 'if you can keep it' - no doubt recalling the fall of other great republics in the history of the world.

This is a fun and exciting book to read, a real page turner. It was published in 1987 as part of the bicentennial celebrations of the Constitution; former Chief Justice Warren Burger provides a foreword for this text.

This is a great and inspiring story, one that should be of concern to Americans of all types and walks of life. We are all 'we the people'.

I'm a nerd. 95% of my books are computer-related. This book will gave me an appreciation of what an extraordinary event the convention was. Several times it shows how it could have so easily fallen apart or gone off in a different direction (and Lord knows what kind of land this would be if it had). This book and another great book called 'Voices of 1776' will give you an awesome sense of how lucky we are to be what we are today. I cannot recommend this book more highly. (BTW, did you know that the only two signers of the Declaration of Independence who went on to become presidents, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, died within two hours of each other on July 4, 1826 - 50 years to the day the Declaration was signed?)

Fantastic series! Read all three.

A very strongly recommended instructional reference and resource, The Reference Librarian's Policies, Forms, Guidelines, And Procedures Handbook: With CD-Rom by expert librarian Rebecca Brumley is a precise collective reference for students of the library sciences and administration roles in library systems. The Reference Librarian's Policies, Forms, Guide-lines, And Procedures Handbook addresses every intricate detailing of a library's constructs, including management, personnel, selection and evaluation resources, circulation and interlibrary loan, query categories, resources and Assistance offered, in-person patron assistance, and an exploratory virtual reference on disc. The Reference Librarian's Policies, Forms, Guidelines, And Procedures Handbook is the ideal reference and study for all library systems from small community libraries to multi-branched urban libraries searching for a guide to the overall betterment of the flow in their working system.

A very strongly recommended instructional reference and resource, The Reference Librarian's Policies, Forms, Guidelines, And Procedures Handbook: With CD-Rom by expert librarian Rebecca Brumley is a precise collective reference for students of the library sciences and administration roles in library systems. The Reference Librarian's Policies, Forms, Guide-lines, And Procedures Handbook addresses every intricate detailing of a library's constructs, including management, personnel, selection and evaluation resources, circulation and interlibrary loan, query categories, resources and Assistance offered, in-person patron assistance, and an exploratory virtual reference on disc. The Reference Librarian's Policies, Forms, Guidelines, And Procedures Handbook is the ideal reference and study for all library systems from small community libraries to multi-branched urban libraries searching for a guide to the overall betterment of the flow in their working system.

A very strongly recommended instructional reference and resource, The Reference Librarian's Policies, Forms, Guidelines, And Procedures Handbook: With CD-Rom by expert librarian Rebecca Brumley is a precise collective reference for students of the library sciences and administration roles in library systems. The Reference Librarian's Policies, Forms, Guide-lines, And Procedures Handbook addresses every intricate detailing of a library's constructs, including management, personnel, selection and evaluation resources, circulation and interlibrary loan, query categories, resources and Assistance offered, in-person patron assistance, and an exploratory virtual reference on disc. The Reference Librarian's Policies, Forms, Guidelines, And Procedures Handbook is the ideal reference and study for all library systems from small community libraries to multi-branched urban libraries searching for a guide to the overall betterment of the flow in their working system.

A very strongly recommended instructional reference and resource, The Reference Librarian's Policies, Forms, Guidelines, And Procedures Handbook: With CD-Rom by expert librarian Rebecca Brumley is a precise collective reference for students of the library sciences and administration roles in library systems. The Reference Librarian's Policies, Forms, Guide-lines, And Procedures Handbook addresses every intricate detailing of a library's constructs, including management, personnel, selection and evaluation resources, circulation and interlibrary loan, query categories, resources and Assistance offered, in-person patron assistance, and an exploratory virtual reference on disc. The Reference Librarian's Policies, Forms, Guidelines, And Procedures Handbook is the ideal reference and study for all library systems from small community libraries to multi-branched urban libraries searching for a guide to the overall betterment of the flow in their working system.

This book was pathbreaking when it was wrttien in 1996. I am using it as part of an article I am writing on health care regulation today.

While the title is Health Care Regulation in America, this book is about much more than how health care is regulated. It traces the complex interrelationships among providers, payers, consumers and patients from historical and policy perspectives. The prose is less that of a textbook writer and more that of a storyteller. The success of this book - and its readability - come from the author's clear understanding of the stakeholders involved, their individual points of view and the conflicts between them. He is also not afraid to express his own opinions, while doing so in an evenhanded manner.

The book carefully reviews the regulation and policy conflicts that affect every component of the healthcare system as they relate to the care that patients actually receive. Each section begins with historical context, establishes the relevant stakeholders and their interrelationships and finishes with a synthesis of relevant regulations and health policy. The historical perspective is the key - in healthcare, as in many other areas, context helps understanding, and understanding affects relationships and the potential for future change. I strongly recommend this book not only to students and professionals, but also to anyone with an interest in how our healthcare system actually works and where the opportunities lie for real reform.

This book provides a comprehensive look at the many facets of health care and the factors which influence the imposition of regulations in an industry already over-regulated. Field includes a chapter examining the potential clash between old/present policy and additional regulatory issues impacted by increasing technology, baby boomers, HIPAA and the intersection between public policy and private interests. A must read for those interested in health policy.

An excellent book that explores the myth of telecommunications policy. A problem in telecommunications policy is that the regulatory approaches have been sufficiently long lived that those who regulate today were not around when the regulatory policy was established. We have lived so long with regulatory approach that we have lost site of regulatory policy. As we today address, should a VoIP phone be regulated like a Verizon POTS phone, the answer is normally "Yes" because "like things should be regulated the same." This articulates a regulatory approach devoid of comprehension as to why a Verizon POTS phone was ever regulated in the first place. Milton Mueller takes us there and explores through his dissection of Universal Service what first brought about these policies, who sought them, and what gain they thought might be achieved through regulation. Today's universal service (98% of all americans have phones) is a grand achievement, but it is a far cry from what AT&T meant by "universal service" in 1908.

In this crisply written mix of history and clear theory, Mueller retells the history of early competition in telephony -- and of the role of regulation in making the AT&T monopoly. The book brings to life a completely forgotten period, where telephones were like computer operating systems today -- competing yet incompatible. Not every phone could be called from every phone, and this fact, Mueller convincingly argues, pushed competition in telephone penetration.

The book also is convincing in its account of the reconstruction of the meaning of the word "universal service" which was brought about, Mueller argues, by AT&T revisionism in the 1970s. The original meaning was simply that any phone would be able to call any phone; the modern meaning (that some service subsidizes other service) was a construction of a late monopoly trying to defend itself.

The book suggests wonderful (if under developed) parallels with the story of competition in modern operating systems. And it offers some important skepticism about the 1996 Telecommunications Act.

A fascinating account of telephone competition in the early 1900s, when the competing telephone systems did not connect. Mueller's analysis of the experience of a fragmented telecommunications infrastructure--and the decision to put an end to it in the name of "universal service"--has important implications for Internet and telecom development today. John Crook

In contemporary society, people increasingly rely on governmentto provide many goods and services. Those who champion governmentallocation of resources fail to consider both the effectiveness of government allocation and the moral questions involved. In the last century, resistance to government intervention, from paper money to economics regulation, was far more pervasive and effective than it is today. Indeed, today's Americans only have a faint understanding of the Constitution and its envisioned restraints on government activity. The Constitution and its philosophical underpinning are rarely taught and understood by most Americans. That is a remarkable change from the time of our nation's founding when a large percentage of Americans were conversant with the ideas of Locke, Cato, Paine and the Federalist Papers.

The Declaration of Independence, one of America's most important political documents, contains statements that are today greeted with hostility, or at best, viewed as extremist. The motif of America's inauguration has become too radical to discuss without extreme qualification, and those who want to use it to assail the present political process are labeled 'radicals.' Of course, the liberty-loving American founders also carried this sobriquet. Another characteristic of the modern age is that Americans have become carelessly oblivious to the historical struggle for the vast liberties they enjoy but the preservation of which they now seem to disregard.

Dr. Cobin's book is part of the growing literature of case studies legal-philosophical treatises that provide economic analyses of public policy. While many other studies about regulation have been produced, Dr. Cobin has provided a major contribution to local regulatory issues. Building regulation and the modern system of private property rights are areas which are taken for granted by most people. However, this book reveals that there are more than trivial policy defects in our system of private property rights. Dr. Cobin has established that there is a real need to re-examine how private property rights are regulated. In the same way that public choice theory has exploded the notion of altruistic bureaucrats and politicians, who serve the interest of the public to the disregard their private interests, Dr. Cobin's book unmasks local building regulations whose ostensible purposes are to serve the public interest.

The results of Dr. Cobin's work lead us into a new dimension of public policy deliberation, i.e., whether government regulations produce more or less safety than that provided through the market 'regulation.' If government regulations reduce the safety and quality of goods or services, then it is in the public interest to revise or eliminate such regulation. Dr. Cobin has also done a commendable job of demonstrating that market provision can produce efficient and effective regulation, even for informational services that are assumed to be public goods. After demonstrating the failings of government regulation and provision of information about quality, Dr. Cobin shows us that markets can do in building and safety regulations what it has done the rare coin and gemstone industries.

Dr. Cobin's work goes even further. In addition to suggesting an adequate policy alternative for a failing system of building regulation, he also resurrects an alternate legal philosophy of real property. This system, known as 'allodialism,' is not a novel concept but has deep roots in Western civilization. However, it has been obfuscated over the years in favor of feudalism. It may surprise many readers that the American system of real property, not to mention the rest of the world's is essentially feudalistic. This fact should be repugnant in America where the Founding Fathers sought to abrogate all fetters of tyranny and oppression. An allodial real property system would make private property rights absolute and not subject to any form of coercive taxation or regulation. Subsequently, allodialism would serve to secure rights to property as guaranteed by the Bill of Rights and the Declaration of Independence.

Hopefully, this study will provide the impetus for scholarship, in both case studies of local regulation and renewed discussion and analysis of allodial property rights. Not only can this book be added to the annals of regulatory studies which support market over government provision, but its philosophical basis can be used in basic disciplines, including law, economics, philosophy, political science and history. Dr. Cobin has made an important contribution to an important public policy area in a novel and frequently overlooked way.

This book provides evidence that the state has failed to provide building safety regulation in the public interest. Useful market alternatives are suggested to replace government regulation. A must read for anyone studying urban regulation or interested in policy applications from free market economics.

Wonderful read...absolute best for the learning spirit. Who wants to know mutual funds? I DO!!!

This book provides an excellent and concise history of the mutual fund industry beginning with the first mutual funds created following the civil war up to the late 1980s. It discusses abuses by mutual funds during the market boom of the 1920s and the resultant legislation/regulation that was adopted in the ICA of 1940 and the 1970 amendments. Relevant litigation and summaries of court decisions are provided though 1987. The second half of the book provides a detailed econometric analysis of competition in the mutual fund industry. Policy implications resulting from the research are provided. This book is an excellent addition to any academic library and is a good read for anyone interested in conducting mutual fund research.