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Working Papers by Christopher Coyne

Working Papers by Christopher Coyne

The Origins of the Permanent War Economy

A Consequence of Government, Not Capitalism
Published in
SSRN
Christopher Coyne, Thomas Duncan | Mar 19, 2013
The narrative that arose during the Great Depression and World War II was that capitalism was in its final stages and failing. The economic arguments of the time combined strands of Keynesianism and Marxism to construct a link between military spending and unemployment, suggesting that the capitalist economy of the U.S. must become militarized to be sustained.

The Empire Strikes Back: Adam Smith, John Stuart Mill, and the Robust Political Economy of Empire

Christopher Coyne, Abigail Hall | Feb 09, 2013
Recent scholarship regarding the idea of a U.S. Empire has raised serious questions as to the feasibility and desirability of imperial ambitions. This paper traces the debate over the net-benefit of empire back to the Classical economists.

Institutional Bottlenecks: What Can Be Done?

Published in
SSRN
Christopher Coyne, Abigail Hall | Dec 11, 2012
Institutional bottlenecks refer to path-dependent institutional arrangements which contribute to economic stagnation. In his research, Timur Kuran identifies several historical institutional bottlenecks which contributed to economic decline and underdevelopment of the Middle East. The authors use Kuran’s research as springboard to ask: what can be done about institutional bottlenecks?

The Political Economy of Human Rights Scandals

Published in
SSRN
Christopher Coyne, Rachel Mathers | Aug 25, 2012
This paper develops the political economy of human rights scandals involving government agencies. An analysis of the Abu Ghraib prison scandal is provided to illustrate the economic approach to human rights scandals.

The Militarization of U.S. Domestic Policing

Published in
SSRN
Christopher Coyne, Abigail Hall | Aug 02, 2012
This paper develops the political economy of the militarization of domestic policing. We apply our theory to the U.S., where we trace the (failed) historical attempts to establish constraints to separate the military functions and policing functions of government. In doing so we emphasize the role of crises in the form of perpetual wars — the “War on Drugs” and the “War on Terror” — in the accelerated militarization of domestic policing.

The Overlooked Costs of the Permanent War Economy

A Market Process Approach
Published in
SSRN
Christopher Coyne, Thomas Duncan | Jul 26, 2012
How does the permanent war economy interact, and subsume, the private, non-military economy? Can the two remain at a distance while sharing resource pools? This paper argues that they cannot. Once the U.S. embarked upon the path of permanent war, starting with World War II, the result was a permanent war economy. The permanent war economy continuously draws resources into the military sector at the expense of the private economy, even in times of peace.

Delusions of Grandeur

On The Creeping Militarization of U.S. Foreign Policy
Christopher Coyne | Mar 01, 2011
This paper analyzes the political economy of the creeping militarization of U.S. foreign policy. The tools of political economy are used to analyze some of the implications.

An Unrighteous Piece of Business

A New Institutional Analysis of the Memphis Riot of 1866
Christopher Coyne, Art Carden | Jul 27, 2010
To what extent can outsiders impose sustainable change on insiders acting within existing institutional arrangements? This paper explores this question in the context of the American Reconstruction…

The Political Economy of FEMA: Did Reorganization Matter?

Peter Leeson, Christopher Coyne | Dec 2009
This paper investigates the political economy of FEMA’s post-9/11 merger with the Department of Homeland…

With Friends Like These, Who Needs Enemies? Aiding the World's Worst Dictators - Working Paper

Christopher Coyne, Matt E. Ryan | Sep 2008
Despite rhetoric supporting liberal values and institutions, the governments of developed countries provide continued development and military assistance to the world's worst…

Contact

Christopher Coyne

Research Areas

Austrian Economics, Economic History, Emerging Democracies, Post-war & Disaster Reconstruction, Public Choice, Social Change

Course Syllabi

Links

Videos

Liberty in Books: Doing Bad by Doing Good with Christopher Coyne

Christopher Coyne | May 14, 2013

Doing Bad by Doing Good, Why Humanitarian Action Fails Book Panel

Christopher Coyne, Peter J. Boettke | May 14, 2013

Peter Boettke Discusses "Living Economics" for the Future of Freedom Foundation

Peter J. Boettke, Christopher Coyne, Sheldon Richman | March 27, 2013

Chris Coyne on The Limits of State-led Foreign Intervention

Christopher Coyne | October 24, 2012

Chris Coyne on the Future of Research on Entrepreneurship

Christopher Coyne | October 04, 2012
More Videos

Books

Doing Bad by Doing Good: Why Humanitarian Action Fails

Christopher Coyne | Apr 2013
In 2010, Haiti was ravaged by a brutal earthquake that affected the lives of millions. The call to assist those in need was heard around the globe. Yet two years later humanitarian efforts led by governments and NGOs have largely failed.
More Books

Podcasts

Political and Economic Change in Egypt and the Middle East

S. Ramachandran, Christopher Coyne, Jack Goldstone, Peshwaz Faizulla | March 03, 2011
With the current turmoil in the Middle East and shifting political tides, it is difficult to predict the changes that will result from today's events. To discuss the current situation, the Mercatus Center and the George Mason University Economics Society brought together a panel of academics and development experts to discuss the political and economic change that the Middle East is experiencing.
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