This gets 9 points from me. I think it's the first I had heard of the Jones Act, and the post's anti-Jones-Act stance is now one that I am proud to still hold. It's so distortionary that shipping between US ports is more than twice the cost of equivalent international ports, and for very dubious strategic benefit. Imagine if the law were instead that 50% of the volume of all ships between US ports must be filled with rubber ducks. The Jones act is actually WORSE than this in many respects because not only does it >double the price, it removes flexibility from supply chains and surge capacity during disasters. The post also touches on how special interest groups control American politics beyond just "big oil" etc., all the ways a market economy should make its citizens' lives better and how many of them go through shipping, and the failure of American shipbuilding [1]. It predates Abundance, which was 4 months later in March 2025, and is certainly an abundance idea. As for downsides, it's somewhat long-winded and I'm a bit skeptical that repeal is actually feasible (some of the commenters point out the large number of people who would actually need to be compensated, and I don't think a government at our current competence level could do this). [1] This last topic is getting more relevant, as the US Navy recently canceled the Constellation program, which marks its third straight failed frigate program.

Due to Raemon's call for more reviews, "especially critical ones", I decided to read and review this one, so yes, I am interested in the topic. The post lists many interesting aspects of the discussed regulation.  Nonetheless, I think the post would not be a good choice for the 2024 Review. * Firstly, the post is a post about American politics and American policy, and I hope the perspective or target audience of LW is not such that is assumed that readers of LW posts naturally understand "we", "our failures", "we have required" etc as "American".  * Secondly, while it is possible that the policy change would yield the benefits promised here, there are strong claims in the beginning of the article ("Repeal would restore America’s oceangoing trade between its ports and rebuild its merchant marine, noticeably impacting the price level and GDP growth.") and you need to read much further to get to a point where sources are presented and discussed. * Thirdly, at least in the first few sections, the causality between the things in "What is the Jones Act?" and "What is the Effect of the Jones Act?" is not explained clearly. "The Jones Act has failed to protect America’s shipbuilding and merchant marine." Okay, so how did it destroy America's shipbuilding and merchant marine? It seems that you already need a clear model of the effects of protectionism in your head to understand what the author is saying. I read only the first sections including "What Else Happens When We Ship More Goods Between Ports?" I will probably continue reading the post later, but for the 2024 Review review, I will stop here.