I had a chance to write about several interesting topics (Australian politics and policy, the economics of government spending, the structure of taxation) on my recent trip Down Under.
I also appeared on The Outsiders, one of Australia’s most popular political programs.
Here are a few links for those who want more information on some of the topics that were discussed.
- Societal capital – I fear that there is a tipping point and that nations are doomed once people decide that it’s morally acceptable to use government coercion to live off the effort of others.
- Demographics – Many nations face a built-in crisis because their redistribution programs are unaffordable
now that people are living longer and having fewer children. - Social Security reform – It’s not pure libertarianism, but Australia’s system of private retirement accounts is vastly superior to America’s bankrupt tax-and-transfer Social Security system.
- Socialism – It’s very troubling that many young people support the poisonous ideology of socialism, but I offered an optimistic spin that this doesn’t necessarily mean support for coercive statism.
- Tax reform – Citing globalization as a driving factor, I couldn’t resist the temptation to spread the supply-side gospel of lower marginal tax rates on productive economic activity.
- Donald Trump – As I’ve repeatedly pointed out, America’s president is an incoherent mix of good policies on tax and regulation mixed with bad policies on spending and trade.
- Trade and protectionism – Speaking of trade, I argued that the trade deficit doesn’t matter and also suggested a sensible approach for dealing with China.
P.S. This interview was an encore performance. I also appeared on The Outsidersin 2017. Part of my plan to curry favor so that I can escape to Australia if (when?) America suffers Greek-style chaos.
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Image credit: Phil Whitehouse | CC BY 2.0.
