Freakonomics blog today has an interesting article about a research which suggests Internet pornography may lead to lower rape rates. Hopefully this is not as controversial as the statement in the book which claims the passing of abortion laws in the 70s leads to lower crime rates in the 90s.
I think I become more sensitive to the rules of economics around me after reading the book. Today I had dinner at a local Beijing restaurant. Afterwards, we were given some cash coupons which can be used towards any meals in the future. Someone then suggested implementing a website to allow for exchange or selling of coupons. I immediately pointed out that if such a site becomes popular, the end result can only be that the restaurants stop giving away coupons, since the intended goal of retaining the customer would fail and the coupons will go to customers who already plan to go to the restaurant. This is equivalent to giving discounts for no reason. As a result, the popularity of such a site will eventually lead to the death of the site.
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