This is either frightening or hilarious. The people in Washington who are trying to make America more like Europe are advising the Europeans to double-down on the awful policies that have pushed the continent’s welfare states to insolvency. Here are some of the…
Daily Analysis
New Video from Congressman Paul Ryan Explains Two Key Principles of Tax Reform
Here’s a very good new video from the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, in which he explains why lower tax rates and fewer loopholes are the keys to a simple, fair, and competitive tax system. Very well done. Given my video on the flat tax, as well as my video…
Bringing Science to Government
Accusing a political opponent of being anti-science has become a standard tactic of both parties in recent years. These accusations are usually dishonest, as what the accuser typically means is that the accused is not properly weighing the costs and benefits of…
Super Committee Must Focus on Spending
The so-called Super Committee has been tasked with finding $1.5 trillion in deficit reduction over the next ten years. Though with the President’s recent call for another half-trillion in stimulus that he claims would be payed for, they would need to find $2…
Are Tax Havens Moral or Immoral?
Being the world’s self-appointed defender of so-called tax havens has led to some rather bizarre episodes. The bureaucrats at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development threatened to have me thrown in a Mexican jail for the horrible crime of standing in…
Governor Jon Huntsman, Tax Reform, and Sloppy (Biased?) Coverage from the New York Times
I haven’t said much about the 2012 election, largely because this blog tries to avoid politics and instead focuses on how public policy can promote or (all too often) restrict liberty. But every so often, I feel compelled to pontificate – usually because someone is…
Prostitute Parking Meters! What Will the Germans Tax Next?
In a perverse way (pun intended), I admire German politicians for their creativity. They will figure out ways to tax just about anything. Their latest scheme is a plan that requires streetwalkers to put money in parking meters in exchange for a slip of paper that…
Let’s Send Obama to the Vatican for an Economics Lesson
I’m normally disappointed when religious figures comment on economics, particularly since they often turn the individual call to charity into a blank check for government-coerced redistribution. This runs contrary to individual choice, free will, and morality. So I’m…
Obama Supports VAT Sympathizer for Top Job at Council of Economic Advisers
The White House has announced that it is nominating Alan Krueger, a professor at Princeton, to be the new Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers. In a Freudian copy-editing slip, the Fox News story (at least as of 8:44 a.m.) says “Krueger’s job will be to…
Which Group Is More Despicable, French Politicians or French Rich People?
I enjoy mocking the French every so often, including posts about the nation’s absurd fiscal policy, its protesting government workers, its oddball laws against meanness, its penchant for high taxes, and its shallow attempts to redefine success. Sometimes, I even…