Entries by Andrew Cline

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How the state can help restaurants survive the shutdown

In the month before Gov. Chris Sununu ordered New Hampshire restaurant dining rooms closed, employment at New Hampshire full-service restaurants dropped by more than 8 percent (2,000 people), state figures show. In the month since the governor’s March 16 order, restaurant business has plummeted. State employment data are not yet available for those weeks, but […]

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Why should we have to ask permission to help each other?

WMUR’s Hometown Hero this week is Alexa Cannon, a Founder’s Academy senior who started delivering groceries to people after she lost her job. She’s one of many, from business owners to individuals, who have begun offering urgently needed services outside of traditional regulatory controls. Alene Candles in Milford has switched to making face shields for […]

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The coronavirus clampdown shows how controls breed controls

“The extraordinary government clampdown on economic life that we are enduring — in order to preserve hospital beds and the capacity of doctors and nurses — is the result, not just of the coronavirus, but of the severe restrictions on economic activity that have made our economy brittle and poorly-suited to adapt and respond to […]

How many New England governors really issued “stay home” orders?

Here’s a surprise. In New England, only the Republican governors of New Hampshire and Vermont have issued COVID-19 executive orders that direct all individuals to stay home unless otherwise allowed to go out. That finding comes from a review of all of the New England governors’ executive orders that restrict travel and business activity. To […]

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A disease outbreak is a bad time to ban disposable plastics and paper

Forcing people to carry reusable food and beverage containers in public could accelerate the spread of microbes that cause infectious diseases, multiple academic studies suggest, the Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy shows in a new policy briefing paper.  As government strives to suppress the spread of the novel coronavirus, policymakers should immediately repeal laws, […]

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“Price gouging” and the toilet paper shortage

If you haven’t stocked up on toilet paper, hand sanitizer, disinfectant wipes or milk yet, good luck. By the time you read this, your local supermarket might well be out. At noon on Friday, the Bedford Market Basket had some scattered half gallons and a single gallon-jug of milk left. (It was chocolate, indicating poor […]