Conflict-of-Interest Bugaboo | Richard W. Rahn | Cato Institute: Commentary

Conflict-of-Interest Bugaboo | Richard W. Rahn | Cato Institute: Commentary: "George Soros, who gives even more money to the Democrats and left-leaning causes, is treated as a benevolent hero. Mr. Soros made his money in financial bets against the success of government policies (i.e. shorting currencies); he was betting on economic failure and, in one case at least, with inside information. The Kochs, by contrast, have companies that produce products that are useful to people, such as carpets and paper towels. The Kochs have a vested interest in the success of the American and world economy. Too bad Mr. Soros cannot say the same."

"if you omit from your sample all of those environmental scientists who are on a government tab — salary or research grant — and those relatively few environmental scientists who are on the tab of an oil company or some other vested private industry, you are likely to have a much smaller ratio between those who agree versus those who disagree about global warming. If you are a professor at a state university and write a research paper showing that global warming is not a problem, how long do you think your government funding will remain?"

"The political class and the media decry the growth of lobbyists in Washington. Yet why is it so hard to understand that as government increasingly gives away more money and dispenses more favors, it attracts greater numbers looking for those benefits?"