HT: Partisan Politics and the Inequality Gap — The Atlantic.
Partisan Politics and the Inequality Gap — Atlantic Mobile
01 Apr 2015 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, applied welfare economics, income redistribution, Public Choice, rentseeking Tags: top 1%
Tax reform leads to higher taxes – the evidence on the GST
31 Mar 2015 Leave a comment
in constitutional political economy, politics - Australia, politics - New Zealand, Public Choice, public economics, taxation Tags: Geoffrey Brennan, James Buchanan, tax reform
The GST increased from 10 to 15% in New Zealand; more than doubled in the UK; but GST rates were stable or went up and down in the remaining Anglo-Saxon countries.
As for a selection of other non-Anglo-Saxon countries , Brennan and Buchanan were right. Tax reforms such as a broad-based consumption tax leads to higher taxes through time.
ICYMI: How does Australia's GST compare with other nations? ab.co/1eBsdrS #factcheck http://t.co/QFP05xonEB—
ABC Fact Check (@ABCFactCheck) July 31, 2015
The GST (goods and services tax) in Europe is known as the value added tax (VAT).
Source: OECD Tax Database – OECD.
Up until 2001, UK women were more likely to vote Tory than UK men
31 Mar 2015 Leave a comment
Interesting, because women’s demand for social insurance was a major driver of the growth of government in the 20th century.
The impact of gerrymanders on US congressional elections
27 Mar 2015 Leave a comment
in politics - USA, Public Choice Tags: 2012 congressional elections, gerrymanders
When Americans voted for the House of Representatives in 2012, Democratic candidates won 1.4 million more votes than Republicans. Yet after the dust settled, the GOP ended up with a 234-201 majority in the chamber.
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Last year, in contrast, the GOP won a national landslide. But despite winning big victories in these four states, they only picked up one new House seat overall among them (in North Carolina). That’s because Republicans already won nearly all of the competitive seats in 2012 — partly because of gerrymandering…
Several analyses find that simple geography matters more — many Democratic voters are packed closer together in urban areas.
HT: vox.com
No one says this about economists
27 Mar 2015 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, applied welfare economics, Austrian economics, comparative institutional analysis, constitutional political economy, F.A. Hayek, liberalism, Public Choice, rentseeking Tags: evidence-based policy, offsetting behaviour, science and public policy, The fatal conceit, The pretence to knowledge, unintended consequences
Scientists dream about what could be.
Economists remind you of price tags and unintended consequences
The Campaign To Make You Care About Climate Change Is Failing Miserably
27 Mar 2015 Leave a comment
in economic history, economics of media and culture, environmental economics, global warming, politics - USA, Public Choice Tags: climate alarmism, expressive voting, global warming, rational ignorance, rational irrationality
Since 1989, there’s been no significant change in the public’s concern level over global warming. To put this in perspective, note that the most expensive public-relations campaign in history—one that includes most governmental agencies, a long list of welfare-sucking corporations, the public school system, the universities, an infinite parade of celebrities, think tanks, well-funded environmental groups and an entire major political party—has, over the past 25 years or so, increased the number of Democrats who “worry greatly” about global warming by a mere four percentage points.
via The Campaign To Make You Care About Climate Change Is Failing Miserably, Climate Change Not a Top Worry in U.S., In U.S., Concern About Environmental Threats Eases and The number of people worried about climate change hasn’t changed since 1989 – The Washington Post.
Paul Krugman on the importance of not taking cheap shots in public policy discussions
25 Mar 2015 1 Comment
in applied price theory, applied welfare economics, history of economic thought, industrial organisation, international economics, Public Choice Tags: conjecture and refutation, Paul Krugman, pop internationalism, public intellectual
In Defence of Negativity in Politics – John G. Geer
24 Mar 2015 Leave a comment
in economics of information, economics of media and culture, politics - Australia, politics - New Zealand, politics - USA, Public Choice Tags: Attack Ads, expressive voting, John G. Geer, political psychology, rational ignorance, rational irrationality
John G. Geer, author of In Defense of Negativity: Attack Ads in Presidential Campaigns, argues that negative ads are positive. They focus on important political issues and give voters critical information about differences between candidates. Attack ads do not degrade, but rather enrich the democratic process. When political candidates attack each other, they raise doubts about each other’s views and qualifications. Voters—and the democratic process—benefit from this clash of opinions.
The international success of Big Wind
24 Mar 2015 Leave a comment
in environmental economics, global warming, rentseeking Tags: Big Wind, climate alarmism, global warning, green rent seeking, renewable resources, wind power
Life expectancy vis-a-vis the old age pension eligibility age has changed big time
23 Mar 2015 Leave a comment
Creative destruction in cell phone battery gripes
22 Mar 2015 Leave a comment
in economics of media and culture, entrepreneurship, industrial organisation, Joseph Schumpeter
A few months ago, my complaint about my cell phone battery was it ran out after a couple of hours use.
Now my complaint about my new HTC 510 is the battery lasts so long that it takes quite some time to recharge it. My current and previous phones were HTC. The new phone costs the same $299 as I paid for the previous HTC, but is about three times as good as the old one which I bought about 18 months ago.
When researching the purchase of my new phone, I read a few reviews where I discovered they are written by complete snobs who own the latest iPhone and looked down on anything cheaper.
Utopia, you are standing in it! 
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