We all know bootleggers and Baptists rarely see eye to eye. Ask one group and its members will probably tell you they despise the other group. Yet, when it comes to government regulation, both bootleggers and Baptists work together. Prof. Bruce Yandle explains that this happens because both groups actually desire the same outcome. The Baptists benefit, for example, from laws that make the sale of alcoholic beverages illegal on Sundays. Bootleggers benefit because now they can sell alcohol on Sundays. Groups who would never meet together but both desire the same outcome can often be found upon closer examination of many government regulations. Prof. Yandle demonstrates how environmental regulations fit into the bootlegger-Baptist theory.
Bootleggers and Baptists | LearnLiberty
Date
Topics
Related Content
-
State Trust Land Revenue Diversification Through Conservation
Examining practical considerations for integrating conservation uses into existing trust land management frameworks.
-
PERC Reports, Winter 2025/26
This special issue contemplates big ideas for the next era of conservation.
-
Stewards of the Open Ranges
Across America’s private lands, those who live closest to the wild both enjoy the beauty of it and carry the burden of sharing it. They also hold the key to its future.