policy over politics | interested in all thing that help people flourish | President & CEO @consumerpal
Washington, DC
Joined April 2017
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Improving public health is not as simple as slapping on labels. Health isn't the only consumer consideration when purchasing food.
"These differences can be explained partly by the gap between private and public incentives. Consumers weigh health against price, taste, and convenience differently, and their choices often differ from policy goals, even when they have more information. This helps explain why U.S. labeling effects appear only in certain groups. Chile shows the same pattern. Labeled products lost about 26% of sales relative to unlabeled products, but the loss was concentrated among consumers who believed the product was healthy (−40%)and was small and temporary among those who already knew it was not."
bpb-us-w2.wpmucdn.com/voices…
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Tirzah Duren retweeted
Personalized pricing is an area that needs some rigorous NON-populist empirical examination. Some people wrongly think it is inherently harmful. Consumer effects can be either positive or negative, depending on the circumstances. economics.yale.edu/research/…
FTC launches personalized pricing and compensation inquiry. Commission orders seek pricing and compensation methodology from major airlines, ride-sharing companies and food-delivery firms: bit.ly/4zhvard
Despite years of research and historical evidence against price caps, they still remain a favorite policy of lawmakers.
TLDR; price caps cause scarcity
Tirzah Duren retweeted
Out today!
Before you romanticize the past, read The Grim Old Days by Cato’s @chellivia.
Unthinkable poverty. Bloodletting. Streets turned into open sewers. The preindustrial world was more gruesome than modern minds can fathom.
Order now: ow.ly/NL8j50ZY9JW
Tirzah Duren retweeted
🚨 Mississippi schools could receive up to $33 MILLION a year in tax revenue from Amazon's data centers.
Madison County's superintendent calls it “transformational.”
The money could help fund a new career education center and higher teacher salaries.
Madison County Schools calls data centers 'transformational'. See why clarionledger.com/story/news…
Great read for anyone feeling like an "outsider."
It could be your greatest strength.
aei.org/domestic-policy/less…
Tirzah Duren retweeted
50 Cent vs. Verizon is making the rounds because it involves celebrities people know. Channel blackouts from failed carriage deals are less famous, but fairly common. It’s mostly just a negotiating tactic.
@consumerpal mapped out some of the bigger ones about a year ago. Lather, rinse, repeat.
theamericanconsumer.org/2025…
😬 50 Cent slams Verizon over STARZ blackout, tells "Power" fans to switch providers.
Exclusive details: tmz.me/4dhWHzM
Tirzah Duren retweeted
🚨🚨🚨@MarshaBlackburn is seeking unanimous consent on KOSA today.
The research on social media and teen mental health? Mixed and weak, at best. Small effects across nearly every study.
Meanwhile, states that tried similar laws got over-censorship, legal limbo, and First Amendment problems.
Slow down. Get the evidence right first.
theamericanconsumer.org/2026…
Tirzah Duren retweeted
The CCCA would force big banks to offer a second, non-@Visa /@Mastercard network on every card. But the bill leans on market share math alone. Economic research shows oligopoly structure alone doesn't predict pricing behavior; low entry barriers can produce near-competitive outcomes even with few firms. Lawmakers should look at actual market behavior, not just headcount, before regulating.
Read more by @tzduren and @leahmlocke here: theamericanconsumer.org/2026…
Tirzah Duren retweeted
Important to keep in mind as the FTC considers algorithmic pricing regulations.
Tirzah Duren retweeted
Dealer fees and pricing games are costing car buyers billions a year.
The @FTC's recent guidance is in alignment with @Consumerpal's report released in August.
Their new guidance says the price you advertise has to be the price people actually pay. No hidden fees, no bait-and-switch. 🚗💸
@Consumerpal's report: theamericanconsumer.org/2026…
#ConsumerProtection #FTC
K-beauty didn’t take over the world by accident.
Behind the glass skin and snail mucin is a fascinating story of smart policy, savvy consumers, and supply-chain innovation.
glamgovernance.substack.com/…
1/5)Every generation thinks the newest technology is different.
The printing press. The telephone. Radio. Television. The internet. Now AI.
Each brought real disruption and legitimate fears. Yet we often forget how quickly yesterday’s “unprecedented” technology became ordinary.
4/5) And there’s an important paradox here: innovation can itself be a safety tool.
AI can detect fraud, improve cybersecurity, expand access to services, accelerate scientific discovery and make products cheaper.
As @Logan_Kolas recently noted, safeguards intended to eliminate one risk can sometimes limit access to technologies that help address risks we haven’t even anticipated.
theamericanconsumer.org/2026…
Tirzah Duren retweeted
The first copies of my book are here!
The result of years of research and writing, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘎𝘳𝘪𝘮 𝘖𝘭𝘥 𝘋𝘢𝘺𝘴 takes the reader on a tour of a thankfully lost world of bloodletting, filth, destitution, and famine-induced cannibalism.
Pre-order now: a.co/d/0hrciEBm
Tirzah Duren retweeted
🚨 New report from @consumerpal: "affordability crisis" narrative is more complicated than it seems. Incomes and purchasing power have broadly improved for Americans. Housing is the big exception, and it's a supply problem, not a broader economic one.
Read the full report by @tzduren here: theamericanconsumer.org/2026…
Check out @consumerpal's latest report on housing the affordability. Link in the comments