Five Second ... Romer Takedown

"You too can have this city, if you just purchase a simple, easily applied set of rules. Retails at $49.99"


Dissanayake is deeply troubled by Romer's arguments for Charter Cities. Well worth reading in entirety, here is the Five Second version:

So, in other words, the only kind of places where a Charter City might actually work are where the Government is strong, has a legitimate leader, and able to resist opposition. Sounds like the kind of Government that least needs a foreign power to come in and govern a city for them. ...

Romer’s approach is wrong not because he thinks rules are important or that countries should invite rich Governments to enforce them, but because Romer thinks he already knows the rules, and that they can be imported anywhere. That’s not how it works.