No Brotherly Love for Entrepreneurs
The city of Philadelphia is governed by the ordinary things one finds in American cities: a mayor, a city council, various bureaucracies. But it is also governed by something else: the word “no.” At nearly every level, Philadelphia’s city government and related bureaucracies operate with a one-word vocabulary; whatever the question is, the answer is “No.” In field after field after field—from zoning to permitting to occupational licensing—would-be entrepreneurs hear that answer time and again.
But as anyone who has ever spent time around a toddler can attest, a one-word vocabulary quickly wears thin—and in this (as in many things) what is tolerable in a toddler makes for terrible public policy. Saying nothing but “no” eventually yields exactly what one would expect: nothing.
And nothing, unfortunately, is what Philadelphia has to look forward to unless it begins to reshape its approach to entrepreneurship.
Related Cases

Economic Liberty | Fresh Start
Texas Fresh Start Social Worker
Texas—and the country—face a two-fold problem: an exploding mental health and substance abuse crisis and a dire shortage of professional social workers to address those issues. Yet rather than make it easier for qualified applicants…

Economic Liberty | Food Freedom
Florida Cultivated Meat Ban
Americans love meat. According to the USDA, between beef, pork, chicken, and turkey, the average American eats nearly 225 pounds of meat per year.

Economic Liberty | Fresh Start
Virginia Fresh Start II
People who have overcome drug or alcohol addiction often want to help others overcome addiction, too. Their firsthand experience can make them particularly well-suited to guide others through recovery. Melissa Brown is one of those…
In The News
Liberty & Law Article
IJ’s New City Studies: Want to Create Jobs? Remove Red Tape.
News
City Of No: Part Two
News