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By Adam Smith and Bruce Yandle. 2014. Washington DC: Cato Institute, Pp. 230. $24.95 hardcover, $9.99 eBook.
The theme of this book is that there are two major forces driving government regulation. One force is the economic self-interest of those promoting the regulation--the Bootleggers. The other force is from those who take a high moral ground--the Baptists. The metaphor is drawn from an earlier era where the bootleggers backed legislation regulating the legal sale of alcohol to promote their own economic self-interest. The Baptists sought alcohol regulation to decrease the negative impacts its consumption had on individuals, families, and the community. These seemingly mismatched interest groups climbed into political bed and served each other's special interest. I will continue to capitalize Bootleggers and Baptists emphasizing their metaphoric representation, hoping not to confuse or disparage real ones.
The authors argue that this combination of forces was not unique to a bygone Prohibition era. They argue that most regulatory policies have these two forces at work as a principle of regulation. They see this fundamental theme in the anti-cigarette smoking movement, the pro-marijuana smoking campaign, climate change politics, environmental regulation, the Troubled Asset Relief Program, and the Affordable Care Act, to name a few. Although these are hot-button current topics, the book is more than just a popularization of current economic events. It actually began as a four-page "Viewpoint" in The American Enterprise Institute's Regulation journal, by Professor Yandle in 1983. That paper is attached as an appendix to the book showing a bit of the history of the idea. That paper was published one year after the co-author, Professor Smith, was born. I mention this because Yandel is the grandfather of Smith. To complete the genealogy, Kathryn Yandle Smith is a professional editor and writer who reviewed the project. This was a three-generation family project. Yandle and...