by Dan Mitchell | Dec 26, 2016 | Blogs, Economics
There’s a somewhat famous quote from Adam Smith (“there is a great deal of ruin in a nation“) about the ability of a country to survive and withstand lots of bad public policy. I’ve tried to get across the same point by explaining that you don’t need perfect policy,...
by Dan Mitchell | Nov 6, 2016 | Blogs, Europe
Back in 2012, I wrote a detailed article explaining that Europe became rich in part because Europe didn’t exist. The geographic landmass of Europe existed, of course, but the continent was characterized by massive political fragmentation. And this absence of...
by Dan Mitchell | Sep 20, 2016 | Big Government, Blogs, Economics, Tax Competition, Tax Harmonization, Taxation
I’ve previously written about the bizarre attack that the European Commission has launched against Ireland’s tax policy. The bureaucrats in Brussels have concocted a strange theory that Ireland’s pro-growth tax system provides “state aid” to companies like Apple (in...
by Dan Mitchell | Sep 2, 2016 | Blogs, Tax Competition, Taxation
Like all good libertarians, I hate waiting in government-mandated lines. Heck, you don’t even have to be a curmudgeonly libertarian to have unpleasant thoughts about the Post Office or Department of Motor Vehicles (not to mention the virtual lines that exist for...
by Dan Mitchell | May 11, 2016 | Blogs, Economics, Financial Privacy, Tax Competition, Tax Havens, Taxation
Economists certainly don’t speak with one voice, but there’s a general consensus on two principles of public finance that will lead to a more competitive and prosperous economy. Lower tax rates are more conducive to work and entrepreneurship than higher tax rates....
