Tyler Cowen doesn’t want to see cell phone use on planes. He has a strong opinion and is looking for academic arguments to support it: Can I claim that cell phone calls are a socially wasteful means of signaling to your spouse that you care? Can I claim that commercial airplanes are modern (short-term) monasteries, and that markets undersupply such temples of silence? Phone use is actually allowed onboard planes now — the phone is in the seatback and the cost is several dollars per minute. The change is making low cost calls available via personal cell phones. Tyler would presumably tax that useage substantially in order to maintain existing cost levels which prevent would-be phone users from invading his silence. I think Tyler is incorrect if he’s imagining people on cell phones yammering on…
