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THE WEEK OF APRIL 26, 2026
** This Week on Abundance and Responsibility
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** Abundance Pragmatism Fails ([link removed])
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Richard M. Reinsch II examines the "abundance" movement, which argues that America's challenges come less from real shortages than from rules and red tape that block housing, infrastructure, and energy production. He agrees these barriers can slow down even essential projects, including clean energy. But he warns that simply pushing to build more isn't enough—real, lasting abundance requires economic freedom, good governance, and market discipline. Without those foundations, more development risks creating waste and hidden costs rather than durable growth.
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** How should societies think about abundance in a world where economic growth, environmental concerns, and resource use are increasingly interconnected?
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** “The story of America in the twenty-first century is the story of chosen scarcities” – Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson in Abundance
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As rising energy costs, housing shortages, and infrastructure constraints continue to shape public debate, this week's essays explore the conditions necessary for sustained economic abundance. They examine how regulatory frameworks, market incentives, and institutional design influence the production of energy, housing, and essential resources. Together, they argue that durable prosperity requires not only expanded output but also the principles and governance structures capable of sustaining it.
** Articles
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** Tiptoeing Towards Abundance? ([link removed])
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Samuel Gregg, Law & Liberty ([link removed])
Samuel Gregg examines efforts to reduce regulatory barriers to growth while still relying on government-led solutions such as industrial policy. He argues that without clear limits on state power and stronger market signals, attempts to expand prosperity and energy production may be undermined by inefficiency and special interests.
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** Toward the Final Transition ([link removed])
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Stephen Davies, Econlib ([link removed])
This essay explores Vaclav Smil’s account of how modern abundance emerged through linked transformations in population, agriculture, energy, and economic growth, emphasizing the central role of energy in shaping prosperity. It suggests these dynamics are nearing their limits, pointing toward a future of constrained energy use and slower economic expansion.
** Resourceship: Expanding 'Depletable' Resources ([link removed])
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Robert L. Bradley,[link removed] ([link removed])
Challenging the idea of fixed scarcity, the piece argues that energy and mineral resources expand through human ingenuity, innovation, and market incentives, making abundance a product of economic systems rather than physical limits.
** California Makes Energy a Luxury Good ([link removed])
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Todd Royal,Law & Liberty ([link removed])
California’s energy crisis illustrates how regulatory policies and heavy reliance on renewables have made electricity less reliable and more expensive. The analysis highlights a broader lesson in energy and economics, showing how institutional choices can erode abundance and create artificial scarcity.
** Three Ways of Looking at the Water-Diamond “Paradox” ([link removed])
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Kwok Ping Tsang, Adam Smith Works ([link removed])
Adam Smith’s water-diamond paradox shows that economic value and abundance depend not just on usefulness but on relative availability, human perception, and social context, illustrating how markets and preferences shape outcomes in energy and economic prosperity.
** Podcasts
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** Matthew Yglesias on Affordability, the Social Safety Net, and Economic Dynamism ([link removed])
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The Future of Liberty ([link removed])
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** The Man Who Would Be King of Saudi Arabia (with Karen Elliott House) ([link removed])
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EconTalk ([link removed])
** Videos
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** A Conversation with Ronald H. Coase ([link removed])
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Econlib ([link removed])
Ronald Coase’s life and work showed how real-world observation led him to develop the concepts of transaction costs and property rights, explaining why firms exist and how reducing transaction costs unlocks greater economic abundance by enabling more efficient markets and cooperation.
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Copyright 2026 Liberty Fund. All rights reserved.
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