I’ve decided my one legacy to the world is the phrase, “Bad government policy begets more bad government policy.” This term, which I am modestly calling Mitchell’s Law, describes what happens when government intervention (Fannie and Freddie, for example, or Medicare and Medicaid) causes problems in a particular market (a housing bubble or a third-party payer crisis), which leads the politicians to impose more misguided intervention (bailouts or Obamacare).
Here’s a good example from Germany. The politicians created government-run healthcare. Overweight people are putting a larger burden on the system, imposing costs on taxpayers. The logical response is to shift to a market-based system where people are in charge of their own healthcare costs. Not surprisingly, that option isn’t being considered. Instead, politicians are using the situation as an excuse to consider even more taxes.
Marco Wanderwitz, a conservative member of parliament for the German state of Saxony, said it is unfair and unsustainable for the taxpayer to carry the entire cost of treating obesity-related illnesses in the public health system. “I think that it would be sensible if those who deliberately lead unhealthy lives would be held financially accountable for that,” Wanderwitz said, according to Reuters. Germany, famed for its beer, pork and chocolates, is one of the fattest countries in Europe. Twenty-one percent of German adults were obese in 2007, and the German newspaper Bild estimates that the cost of treating obesity-related illnesses is about 17 billion euro, or $21.7 billion, a year. …Health economist Jurgen Wasem called for Germany to tackle the problem of fattening snacks in order to raise money and reduce obesity. “One should, as with tobacco, tax the purchase of unhealthy consumer goods at a higher rate and partly maintain the health system,” Wasem said, according to Germany’s English-language newspaper The Local. “That applies to alcohol, chocolate or risky sporting equipment such as hang-gliders.” Others are suggesting even more extreme measures. The German teachers association recently called for school kids to be weighed each day, The Daily Telegraph said. The fat kids could then be reported to social services, who could send them to health clinics.
Mitchell’s Law? Apparently Ludwig von Mises once said “Government intervention always breeds economic dislocations that necessitate more government intervention.” Unfortunately, I don’t have the source for that quote, though I can believe he said it.
That’s definitely an insight of Ludwig von Mises.
from 6:10 onwards – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTj2q35RAX0
[...] charged with tax evasion. This story is symbolic of a bigger issue, which is the the unfortunate tendency of governments to create ever-more oppressive and misguided laws in response to failures o…. We see this in the failed War on Drugs, which leads to trampling of civil liberties and erosion of [...]
[...] story is symbolic of a bigger issue, which is the the unfortunate tendency of governments to create ever-more oppressive and misguided laws in response to failures o…. We see this in the failed War on Drugs, which leads to trampling of civil liberties and erosion of [...]
[...] charged with tax evasion. This story is symbolic of a bigger issue, which is the the unfortunate tendency of governments to create ever-more oppressive and misguided laws in response to failures o…. We see this in the failed War on Drugs, which leads to trampling of civil liberties and erosion [...]
[...] story is symbolic of a bigger issue, which is the the unfortunate tendency of governments to create ever-more oppressive and misguided laws in response to failures o…. We see this in the failed War on Drugs, which leads to trampling of civil liberties and erosion of [...]
[...] laundering laws are a classic case of Mitchell’s Law, which is the notion that bad policy begets more bad policy (this insight has been around forever, [...]
[...] laundering laws are a classic case of Mitchell’s Law, which is the notion that bad policy begets more bad policy (this insight has been around forever, [...]
[...] in a second mistake – the bailout of Ireland by the European Union and IMF (a classic case of Mitchell’s Law, which occurs when one bad government policy leads to another bad government [...]
[...] in a second mistake – the bailout of Ireland by the European Union and IMF (a classic case of Mitchell’s Law, which occurs when one bad government policy leads to another bad government [...]
I read the phrase “those who deliberately lead unhealthy lives” and my blood boils. Why is it believed that those who are obese are not following the best advice of the so-called experts on diet? Does no one recognize that obesity has increased with the official advice to decrease fat in the diet and increase grains? Don’t fault those who develop health problems by following the advice of health experts.
[...] the administration is incapable of addressing the real problem by reforming or eliminating the FDA. Mitchell’s Law, which holds that “bad government policy begets more bad government policy,” is once again [...]
[...] scheme for government-run healthcare. Yet that’s a perfect example of what I modestly call Mitchell’s Law – politicians doing one bad thing (expanding the IRS) only because they did another bad thing [...]
[...] new scheme for government-run healthcare. Yet that’s a perfect example of what I modestly call Mitchell’s Law – politicians doing one bad thing (expanding the IRS) only because they did another bad thing [...]
[...] new scheme for government-run healthcare. Yet that’s a perfect example of what I modestly call Mitchell’s Law – politicians doing one bad thing (expanding the IRS) only because they did another bad thing [...]
[...] scheme for government-run healthcare. Yet that’s a perfect example of what I modestly call Mitchell’s Law – politicians doing one bad thing (expanding the IRS) only because they did another bad thing [...]
[...] scheme for government-run healthcare. Yet that’s a perfect example of what I modestly call Mitchell’s Law – politicians doing one bad thing (expanding the IRS) only because they did another bad thing [...]
[...] scheme for government-run healthcare. Yet that’s a perfect example of what I modestly call Mitchell’s Law – politicians doing one bad thing (expanding the IRS) only because they did another bad thing [...]
[...] his new scheme for government-run healthcare. Yet that's a perfect example of what I modestly call Mitchell's Law – politicians doing one bad thing (expanding the IRS) only because they did another bad thing [...]
[...] new scheme for government-run healthcare. Yet that’s a perfect example of what I modestly call Mitchell’s Law – politicians doing one bad thing (expanding the IRS) only because they did another bad thing [...]
crises strategy
(regardless of Francis Piven)
Take advantage of, often by creation, & claim a solution
[...] bans on short selling are classic examples of Mitchell’s Law. Politicians do stupid things such as bad monetary policy and corrupt housing subsidies. Those [...]
Lo, Mitchell’s Law, copied by Ludwig von Mises >)
http://blog.mises.org/18557/controls-breed-controls-monopolies-breed-monopolies/
[...] raising fees because of new regulations in the Dodd-Frank bailout bill. In other words, this is a classic example of “Mitchell’s Law,” which is my narcissistic way of describing how politicians mess up an economy with one bad policy [...]
[...] So I decided to create a new “Golden Rule of Fiscal Policy” based on all these observations (I would have called it Mitchell’s Law, but I’ve already used that title for another purpose). [...]
[...] Regular readers know that I’ve already tried to create a legacy with the not-so-famous Mitchell’s Law, which points out that politicians often propose to expand government to ostensibly solve the [...]
[...] of which, the cartoon in this post is one of my best creations, probably surpassing Mitchell’s Law and Mitchell’s Golden Rule. Rate this: Share [...]
[...] I’ve been mulling this over and think I need to augment Mitchell’s Law and Mitchell’s Golden Rule with something like Mitchell’s Inverse Corollary of Taxation [...]
[...] year, I came up with a saying that “Bad Government Policy Begets More Bad Government Policy” and labeled it [...]
[...] year, I came up with a saying that “Bad Government Policy Begets More Bad Government Policy” and labeled it [...]
[...] year, I came up with a saying that “Bad Government Policy Begets More Bad Government Policy” and labeled it [...]
[...] year, I came up with a saying that “Bad Government Policy Begets More Bad Government Policy” and labeled it [...]
[...] year, I came up with a saying that “Bad Government Policy Begets More Bad Government Policy” and labeled it [...]
[...] Last year, I came up with a saying that “Bad Government Policy Begets More Bad Government Policy” and labeled it [...]
[...] World…in Opposition to Bad U.S. Tax Policy 0 Translatorvar ackuna_src = "en";Last year, I came up with a saying that “Bad Government Policy Begets More Bad Government Policy” and labeled it [...]
[...] year, I came adult with a saying that “Bad Government Policy Begets More Bad Government Policy” and labeled it “Mitchell’s [...]
[...] year, I came adult with a saying that “Bad Government Policy Begets More Bad Government Policy” and labeled it “Mitchell’s [...]
[...] year, I came adult with a saying that “Bad Government Policy Begets More Bad Government Policy” and labeled it “Mitchell’s [...]
[...] year, I came adult with a saying that “Bad Government Policy Begets More Bad Government Policy” and labeled it “Mitchell’s [...]
[...] year, I came adult with a saying that “Bad Government Policy Begets More Bad Government Policy” and labeled it “Mitchell’s [...]
[...] year, I came adult with a saying that “Bad Government Policy Begets More Bad Government Policy” and labeled it “Mitchell’s [...]
[...] year, I came up with a saying that “Bad Government Policy Begets More Bad Government Policy” and labeled it [...]
[...] year, I came up with a saying that “Bad Government Policy Begets More Bad Government Policy” and labeled it “Mitchell’s [...]
Personally I would call that “Reagan’s Law.” Reagan said many things espousing that sentiment, too many to list, though some popular examples are “government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem,” and “the ten most dangerous words in the English language are ‘hi, I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.’” The only problem is that the rule may fail to encompass the man’s sheer scope.
I have a favorite example of this principle related to me by my parents from their native land of Holland, where a bizarrely conceived (no pun intended) program of total compensation for single mothers intended to enable them to raise their children full-time resulted in, among other extremely obvious problems, a severe drop in the amount of married couples. The government suspected, very rightly of course, that child-raising couples were simply forgoing the formality of marriage which would have disqualified them from the stipend. The government’s solution was a series of aggressive investigations, which did exactly what you’d suspect; which is to say, it broke up the parents for real, thus transforming the once-expedient illusion of countless fatherless children into a tragic reality. This happened a few decades ago, and for obvious reasons Holland is now among Europe’s more conservative nations; this was additionally helped along by a massive influx of Muslim immigrants, and particularly ignorant and violent ones at that, even by the standards of their native country.
[...] decided to create a new award. But unlike my other awards, which are exercises in narcissism (Mitchell’s Law, Mitchell’s Golden Rule), I’m naming this award after former Senator Bob [...]
[...] decided to create a new award. But unlike my other awards, which are exercises in narcissism (Mitchell’s Law, Mitchell’s Golden Rule), I’m naming this award after former Senator Bob [...]
[...] intervention, you’re on firm ground – especially if politicians are trying to deal with a mess caused by previous forms of government intervention. Rate this: Share this:PrintEmailFacebookTwitterMoredeliciousDiggFarkLinkedInRedditStumbleUponLike [...]
[...] with that in mind, I’m going to do something similar to Mitchell’s Law and Mitchell’s Golden Rule. But in this case, I’ll actually give credit to someone [...]
[...] with that in mind, I’m going to do something similar to Mitchell’s Law and Mitchell’s Golden Rule. But in this case, I’ll actually give credit to someone else. As [...]
[...] Drug War doesn’t work, and it is the ultimate example of Mitchell’s Law since it has spawned bad policies such as asset forfeiture and anti-money laundering [...]
[...] Drug War doesn’t work, and it is the ultimate example of Mitchell’s Law since it has spawned bad policies such as asset forfeiture and anti-money laundering [...]
[...] the same vein, but recognizing concepts rather than people, we also have “Mitchell’s Law” and “Mitchell’s Golden Rule.” Rate this: Share [...]
[...] the same vein, but recognizing concepts rather than people, we also have “Mitchell’s Law” and “Mitchell’s Golden [...]
[...] galls me so much that I’m motivated to create another narcissistic poster (adding to Mitchell’s Law and Mitchell’s Golden Rule), which I’ll call Mitchell’s Guide to an Ethical [...]
[...] the same vein, but recognizing concepts rather than people, we also have “Mitchell’s Law” and “Mitchell’s Golden [...]
[...] in more resources getting diverted in an effort to compensate for the original failure. Sort of Mitchell’s Law on [...]
[...] more resources getting diverted in an effort to compensate for the original failure. Sort of Mitchell’s Law on [...]
[...] need to come up with something akin to Mitchell’s Law and Mitchell’s Golden Rule, but in this case say something like “Politics is the art of [...]
[...] It’s probably worth noting that this is another example of government stealing when the underlying offense was a victimless crime. I reckon this must be a turbo-charged version of Mitchell’s Law. [...]
[...] Another Sad Example of Mitchell’s Law « International Liberty. Share this:TwitterRedditFacebookEmailPrintDiggStumbleUponLike this:LikeBe the first to like this [...]
[...] is that the government can tell you how to live because it is paying for your healthcare. This is Mitchell’s Law on steroids! One bad government policy leading to another awful government [...]
[...] aspects of this debate is that failure will be used to justify even more intervention (aka, Mitchell’s Law). Politicians in New York City have already banned bake sales, for instance, yet that didn’t [...]
[...] other words, the mess in Europe is a steroid-fueled example of Mitchell’s Law, as each government-caused screw-up is used as an excuse for the next government-caused blunder. [...]
[...] that we can boost savings by imposing a value-added tax! This is not only a perverse example of Mitchell’s law, but it’s also completely [...]
[...] are using the crisis as an excuse for more bad policy – sort of the European version of Mitchell’s Law, with one bad policy (excessive spending) being the precursor of additional bad policy [...]
[...] are using the crisis as an excuse for more bad policy – sort of the European version of Mitchell’s Law, with one bad policy (excessive spending) being the precursor of additional bad policy [...]
[...] expanded bad policy when problems developed as a result of previous bad policy – sort of Mitchell’s Law on steroids in the case of housing. Before the financial crisis, the limit on loans guaranteed by [...]
[...] P.S. At 2:18, the video has a discussion of how subsidies lead to higher costs, which then leads to more demands for additional subsidies. Hmmm…bad government policy leads to more bad government policy. Seems like there’s a term for that phenomenon. [...]
[...] are using the crisis as an excuse for more bad policy – sort of the European version of Mitchell’s Law, with one bad policy (excessive spending) being the precursor of additional bad policy [...]
[...] are using the crisis as an excuse for more bad policy – sort of the European version of Mitchell’s Law, with one bad policy (excessive spending) being the precursor of additional bad policy [...]
[...] is a very perverse example of Mitchell’s Law, with the pinhead bureaucrats at the IMF and elsewhere misallocating global capital on the [...]
[...] P.S. At 2:18, the video has a discussion of how subsidies lead to higher costs, which then leads to more demands for additional subsidies. Hmmm…bad government policy leads to more bad government policy. Seems like there’s a term for that phenomenon. [...]