by Dan Mitchell | Nov 29, 2015 | Blogs, Economics
In conversations with statists, I’ve learned that many of them actually believe the economy is a fixed pie. This misconception leads them to think that rich people get rich only by somehow making others poor. In this simplistic worldview, a bigger slice for one person...
by Dan Mitchell | Sep 26, 2015 | Big Government, Blogs, Economics, Welfare and Entitlements
I repeatedly try to convince people that the welfare state is bad for both taxpayers and poor people. Sometimes I’ll add some more detailed economic analysis and explain that redistribution programs undermine growth by reducing labor supply (with Obamacare being the...
by Dan Mitchell | Jun 22, 2015 | Blogs, Economics
When I wrote the other day that the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development was the worst international bureaucracy, I must have caused some envy at the International Monetary Fund. One can imagine the tax-free bureaucrats from the IMF, lounging at their...
by Dan Mitchell | Jun 17, 2015 | Blogs, Economics
What’s the worst international bureaucracy? There’s certainly a strong argument the International Monetary Fund deserves that award. I’ve even referred to the IMF as the Dr. Kevorkian of the world economy. The United Nations also could claim the award since it wastes...
by Dan Mitchell | Jun 16, 2015 | Blogs, Economics, Free Market
The proper view on inequality is that it doesn’t matter. That assumes, of course, that people are earning their income honestly rather than via government-enabled cronyism. To elaborate, some people will become rich in a system of honest and competitive markets, but...
