And a Black Friday spending spree

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In this e-bulletin:
* Report: Restoring free speech

* Events: The FORUM carousel of ideas; NEW webinar next week

* Blog: Interfering ministers; self-help without governments; Owen Jones; nonscience; and the safety glut




** BUT FIRST...
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The Oxford vaccine looks promising, though you’ll need two doses a month apart. (The Russian vaccine is much easier. Just one quick jab with an umbrella.) But conspiracy theorists are saying that the government plans to inject us with toxic chemicals. (Crazy idea: they’ll just put them in the water.) Personally, I just avoid the virus by chewing two cloves of garlic a day. That keeps everyone at a safe distance. (Certainly works as far as I’m concerned — Ed.)

A big rise in unemployment is causing anguish. (A friend of mine lost his job in the Evo-Stik factory and just fell apart.) So we’re all drinking more to ease our lockdown woes (though I’m sure my old Chemistry teacher told me that alcohol was a solution). We’re also shopping much more online. (I just ordered a chicken and an egg on Amazon. I’ll let you know.) And communicating online too. (I downloaded something called WhatSap but it just seems to identify tree resins.)

At least the gyms will be reopening. I’ve a friend who intends to be in the gym every day—but then he’s the janitor. Anyway, I’ve been keeping in shape at home. (Unfortunately the shape is potato — Ed.)

Riding high this week is Chancellor Rishi Sunak, who is so slick he could be on the stage. (If he did a levitation course he’d be at the top of the class. Might be a different story if he took a book-balancing course, though.) Sinking low is Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, who’s had to let Jeremy Corbyn back into the Party. (Yes, sometimes you meet someone and you know from the very first moment that you want to spend your whole life without them.)

I digress…


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** No rest for the wickedly radical, we have a new report out this week:
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Sense and Sensitivity: Restoring free speech in the United Kingdom ([link removed])

We need First Amendment-style free speech protections in the UK, says ASI Legal Fellow Preston J Byrne. “Freedom of expression is fundamental to life in a free and democratic society,” he says. “This includes the freedom to express ideas that others find loathsome and hateful. There should be no right to not be offended, no right to prevent others from expressing ideas one dislikes.” Existing free-speech protections are woefully inadequate, says Byrne, and are smothered by numerous laws that restrict free expression. And all that law is being used for purposes it was never designed for — as the recent police bullying of Darren Grimes illustrates. Next we are going to have “online harms” legislation that will allow pressure groups to close down debate even on social media. Byrne recommends a suite of legislative remedies for this dire situation.
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Our webinars feature real experts challenging orthodox thinking on key issues. They get thousands of viewers and win praise from politicians (and normal people) around the world. To see them in real time, just reply to this email and I’ll send you invites.


** UPCOMING WEBINAR:
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Health of Nations: From Mass Lockdowns to Mass Vaccinations? ([link removed])

Join our Head of Government Affairs John Macdonald and leading bioethicists, geneticists and forecasters to discuss the way forward for Covid vaccinations. How do we achieve mass vaccinations? Who will be first in line? What logistic challenges do we face? Tune in at 6pm GMT on Tuesday 1 December to find out more. Register for free here ([link removed]) .
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Register here ([link removed])

Don’t forget you can catch all of our webinars after the fact on our website ([link removed]) or YouTube channel ([link removed]) . You’ll find such gems as:
Shareholders and Stakeholders ([link removed]) : Who benefits from enterprise? Matthew Lesh was joined by a leading journalist, business expert, and CEO to discuss the role of shareholder capitalism in the 21st Century. What obligations do companies have to society? With capitalism under attack, this discussion is more important than ever.

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A Divided America ([link removed]) : A week after the election, our resident Captain America Morgan Schondelmeier assembled a crack team of American superstars to discuss what exactly happened in the US election (So they won't be fighting crime? Lame — Ed.). They discussed the future of Trumpism, what a Biden administration might look like, and what the pollsters got wrong (or right).
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Lags, Lockdowns, Externalities and Vaccines ([link removed]) : Matt Kilcoyne led an impressive duo of thinkers through all the economic and social aspects of a pandemic. From economic impact assessments to opportunity costs, this trio applied economic theory to the decision making behind the pandemic (If only someone in No 10. had thought to do that — Ed.).
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** And if you like our webinars, you'll love our podcast!
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Check out the latest episodes of The Pin Factory at this link ([link removed]) . You'll find ASI staff and guests musings on:
* Vaccines, Palace Intrigue and Adam Smith
* US Election and Lockdown Shenanigans
* Biden vs Trump on Brexit Negotiations
* Covid Purgatory and Taxes

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** Covered in it
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Our recent research made a splash. Besides a warm reception on social media, our free speech paper featured on Guido Fawkes ([link removed]) and The Telegraph ([link removed]) , in an op-ed written by paper author Preston Byrne.

The Spending Review came and went with nary a penny saved. Matt Kilcoyne spoke to Sky the day before and Morgan Schondelmeier was on TalkRadio and BBC 5 Live to discuss the outcomes and in The Telegraph ([link removed]) explaining the sense behind the public sector pay freeze. Our comments on the Chancellor’s recent activities appeared in The Telegraph ([link removed]) , Scottish Daily Mail ([link removed]) , ConservativeHome ([link removed]) , and Wired
([link removed]) x2 ([link removed]) .

Our most recent campaign, fighting the Mad Ad Ban Plan has been picking up speed. Our voice rings loudly in The Times ([link removed]) , the Daily Mail ([link removed]) , the Metro ([link removed]) ,The Sun ([link removed]) , The Scottish Sun ([link removed]) , This is Money ([link removed]) , The National ([link removed]) , Newsfeeds
([link removed]) , and the Daily Mail (again) ([link removed]) . We will not let up as long as the government continues to propose such useless and condescending nannying.

With more health developments in response to Covid, Matthew Lesh appeared in The Telegraph ([link removed]) to praise mass testing in Liverpool, and reminded us that capitalism is to thank for the vaccine ([link removed]) . He also wrote in CapX ([link removed]) to criticise the Government’s wasteful procurement spending. John Macdonald also wrote for CapX ([link removed]) about the anti-vaxxer problem we’ll be facing as vaccines get closer.

In Scottish-related news, Matt Kilcoyne appeared in The Telegraph ([link removed]) lambasting the First Minister’s approach to business support (or lack thereof), pushing back against the de facto border between Scotland and England in the BBC ([link removed]) and The Scottish Sun ([link removed]) , and calling Sturgeon just as bad as Trump in the Spectator ([link removed]) (bit harsh on Trump). To top it all off, our Research Associate Hannah Ord, who hails from Scotland, writes in the Spectator ([link removed]-) why Scotland needs to abandon their ‘not proven’ verdict.

And believe it or not, the US election was not so long ago that we don’t have media coverage falling in this newsletter! Matthew Lesh is in CapX ([link removed]) saying that this was the ideal result for free marketeers, and Dan Pryor reminds us ([link removed]) that America leads the way in drug reform.


** FOLLOW US FOR MORE
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Our fifth annual Forum—an extravaganza of radical but reasonable ideas—takes place online this year, via the Zoom platform. We’re bringing together leading thinkers for a whole day of talks on the under-appreciated, under-recognised ideas that they believe can explain and improve what’s happening in the world. Trends, law, drugs, vaping, pandemics, the economy — we have it all covered. The talks are punchy, 15 minutes max, so we can squeeze in as many ideas as we can. You can register here ([link removed]) . And it’s completely free! (Free? Put me down for half a dozen — Ed.)
Register here ([link removed])

Throughout the pandemic, we have continued our student outreach programme, first giving lectures over Zoom and again in person now that schools have reopened. Our Head of Research Matthew Lesh recently visited Ibstock Place School to tell them why Everything is Awesome (no really!). He spoke about reduced poverty levels, decreased instances of war and natural disasters, increased life expectancy, and the technological advancements that allow us to thrive — and fight pandemics. Our Daniel Pryor has been busy, speaking this week to the LSE Hayek Society (as I did also) and we have even more talks lined up with schools and universities across the country.
Our policy chief Matthew Lesh wants your ideas ([link removed]) . Specifically, on how to address our immediate problems, and then on all the things we need to do in order to rebuild our trashed economy. On the first, we’re asking things like what we can learn from experience overseas; what simple regulatory changes would help us to respond and adapt; what simple measures would help businesses. And on the wider issues, we’re looking for reports on red tape, tax reform, the national debt, improving social mobility, harnessing new technologies such as AI, market solutions to environmental problems, the provision of education, expanding free trade, reducing the bureaucracy, decentralisation, internet freedom and more (cor, that’s a lot — Ed.). Read through and send us your thoughts.
Send us your ideas (mailto:[email protected]?subject=Ideas%20pitch)


** Yes, there is intelligent life out there
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Have you ever noticed how all the scientific instruments that look for intelligent life are pointed away from the earth? Well, there is intelligent life around, even on the Internet.



** Read the blog
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Ministers should confine themselves to steering ([link removed]) the ship of state and leave Captain Parliament to set the course, says ASI Senior Fellow Tim Ambler. “The trouble with power is that it is addictive,” he says. “Instead of sticking to steering, the party in power fiddles with legislation and tries to manage things best left to others.” You can see that in the huge rise of 'Statutory Instruments’ — thousands of pages of ministerial orders that are simply nodded through Parliament each year without MPs even having the time to read them, never mind understand them. And don’t blame the EU for all this regulation: the vast bulk of it is home-grown. And too often, says Ambler, mere ministerial ‘advice’ is dressed up to look like commands. As Michael Gove once said, “the machinery of government is no longer equal to the challenges of today.” Well, quite. Ambler offers some solutions.

Looks like Edmund Burke ([link removed]) , and maybe Kropotkin (How do you know all this stuff? — Ed.) had it right, says super-blogger Tim Worstall. We’ve seen a huge boom in volunteering — people delivering food and medicines, checking on vulnerable people and much else. The ‘little platoons’ have taken over where the state is absent or unreliable. “Community self help,” says Worstall, is actually the “appropriate technology for so many of life’s activities and problems: the voluntary association of those concerned to deal with what is in front of them. What’s not to like?" But a dark, dark cloud is forming. The government commissioned Tory MP Danny Kruger to explore how to make all this community spirit “sustainable” over the long term. In other words, “we’ve just found out that certain parts of life are better run without politics, so politics must be reintroduced to them.” Aaaargh!

And check out too:
* If only Owen Jones understood the meerest smidgeon of economics ([link removed])

* Blinding us with nonscience ([link removed])

* It’s possible to have entirely too much safety ([link removed])




** Not our blog but almost just as good!

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Why academics hold Thatcher and Trump in such contempt. ([link removed]) Philip Patrick tells the Spectator that the pointy-heads get very nervous about people who aren’t qualified by their standards, and ask pointed questions about their treasured institutions, but still manage to improve things.

How slick radicals feed socialism to school kids ([link removed]) . Tony Parsons explains how teachers in Australia are being fed free but one-sided content that they lazily dish up to the kids.
AND I QUOTE…

Much debate about how Margaret Thatcher is depicted in the Netflix (they’re a bigger content producer than the BBC, you know) series The Crown this week. (No debate needed. The series started as a drama documentary and has now splodged into soap opera — Ed.) So here’s something suitably evocative of the real thing — a message for some of her successors, perhaps?


“Disciplining yourself to do what you know is right and important, although difficult, is the high road to pride, self esteem and personal satisfaction."


Bye,

e

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