The economist costing the economic plan of a 74-year-old candidate forgot there is an ageing society in his labour force participation rate projections.
Source: Gerald Frieldman (2016).
@BernieSanders has the type of friends that make you prefer your enemies
22 Feb 2016 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, fiscal policy, labour economics, labour supply, macroeconomics, politics - USA Tags: 2016 presidential election, ageing society, cranks, demographic crisis, older workers, quackery, rational ignorance, rational irrationality
And people vote for @BernieSanders because he is honest
21 Feb 2016 Leave a comment
in fiscal policy, income redistribution, macroeconomics, politics - USA, Public Choice, public economics, rentseeking Tags: 2016 presidential election, cranks, quackery, rational ignorance, rational irrationality
Public, mandatory private and private social expenditure as % of US GDP, selected years since 1980
20 Feb 2016 Leave a comment
in economic history, fiscal policy, labour economics, macroeconomics, politics - USA, welfare reform Tags: social insurance, welfare state
Source: OECD Income Distribution database.
Trade policy parallels @BernieSanders @realdonaldtrump @NZGreens? @nzlabour?
20 Feb 2016 Leave a comment
in international economics, politics - New Zealand, politics - USA, Public Choice
Source: Trade Policy Parallels | Econbrowser.
Note: PNTR is Permanent Normal Trade Relations, formerly “Most Favored Nation” status.
Public, mandatory & voluntary private social expenditure, G7, Nordics, Australia & New Zealand
20 Feb 2016 Leave a comment
in applied welfare economics, economics of regulation, fiscal policy, labour economics, politics - Australia, politics - New Zealand, politics - USA, welfare reform Tags: British economy, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Norway, social insurance, Sweden, welfare state
Mandatory and voluntary private social expenditure makes a big difference to the degree of social insurance in some countries but not others. The calculation of these numbers in purchasing power parity would be much more interesting.
Source: OECD Income Distribution database.
% social benefits in cash by income quintile, G7, Nordics, Australia and New Zealand
20 Feb 2016 Leave a comment
in fiscal policy, income redistribution, labour economics, politics - Australia, politics - New Zealand, politics - USA, Public Choice, welfare reform Tags: British economy, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Norway, social insurance, Sweden, welfare state
Some welfare states are much more targeted. Australia has the most targeted welfare state in terms of public social benefits paid in cash to the bottom quintile (Q1) of income earners.
Source: OECD Income Distribution database.
Hillary: I Don’t Believe I’ve Ever Lied to the American People
20 Feb 2016 Leave a comment
in economic history, politics - USA, Public Choice Tags: 2016 presidential election
Gary Becker on the weak case for junk food taxes @JordNZ @dpfdpf
20 Feb 2016 Leave a comment
in economics of regulation, health economics, liberalism, politics - New Zealand, politics - USA Tags: do gooders, food police, junk food taxes, meddlesome preferences, nanny state, sugar taxes
Source: Gary Becker Fat Taxes, or Just Fat? | Hoover Institution (2010).
Most healthcare expenditures are in the last 3 to 6 months of life. Smokers and overeaters live shorter lives. This can save more than it costs to the health budget. That finding is sufficiently frequent as to put the fiscal case for junk food taxes and sugar taxes on the canvas but still with a chance of getting back up to fight on.
At a minimum, it makes junk food and sugar taxes a legitimate topic for honest disagreement. That is before you consider that people have the right to live their lives according to their own lights and make a few sometimes big mistakes along the way as part of finding their way.
Commercial evaluation of KiwiRail, Solid Energy and total SOE portfolio in New Zealand since 2007
20 Feb 2016 Leave a comment
in fiscal policy, industrial organisation, politics - New Zealand, public economics Tags: government ownership, privatisation, state owned enterprises
Two dogs of an investment propped up a $20 billion portfolio that a few years later was worth less than 1/5 of that. Both of these stalwarts are now worth not even one dollar.
Source:New Zealand Treasury – information released under the Official Information Act, January 2016.
@BernieSanders @realDonaldTrump have the same trade policies
20 Feb 2016 Leave a comment
in international economics, politics - USA Tags: antiforeign bias, antimarket bias, left-wing populism 2016 presidential election, rational irrationality, right-wing populism
Expected years in retirement by gender in the G7 countries, Australia and New Zealand
19 Feb 2016 Leave a comment
in labour economics, labour supply, politics - Australia, politics - New Zealand, politics - USA Tags: ageing society, demographic crisis, old age pensions, older workers
Source: OECD Pensions at a Glance 2015.
Smoking – where are the externalities?
19 Feb 2016 2 Comments
in applied welfare economics, economics of regulation, health economics, politics - New Zealand, public economics
It will be a slow train coming before the Morgan Foundation calls for a cut in the tobacco tax because the optimal Pigovian tax on it is already too high from the perspective of externalities or the burden on the public health budget.
Source: Cigarette Taxation and the Social Consequences of Smoking | Heartland Institute.
I think smoking is disgusting and unhealthy but that does not give me the right to regulate the disgusting habits of others. Where would I start in regulating risk-taking? I would have to start with swimming, tramping and biking. They are all high-risk activities of the self-righteous? Not everything others do that I do not like causes an externality.
Few economists work on the economics of smoking other from the starting point that it should be reduced. Those that do not share that starting point such as Robert Tollison, Gary Anderson and William Shughart are subject to relentless personal abuse. They are immediately denounced as the paid whores of the tobacco industry.
That was one of the reasons I got interested in the economics of smoking. There must be something in the case made by Robert Tollison and others questioning tobacco taxes if the first line of argument against them is you are saying that because someone paid, you low down dog.
Effective labour market exit age by gender in the G7 countries, Australia and New Zealand
19 Feb 2016 Leave a comment
in labour economics, labour supply, politics - Australia, politics - New Zealand, politics - USA, population economics Tags: ageing society, gender gap, old age pensions, older workers, social insurance, welfare state
Source: OECD Pensions at a Glance 2015.
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NZ state-owned enterprise dividends & cash injections since 2007 – updated
18 Feb 2016 Leave a comment
in economic history, industrial organisation, politics - New Zealand, public economics Tags: government ownership, KiwiRail, New Zealand Greens, New Zealand Labor Party, privatisation, rational irrationality, state owned enterprises
With a straight face, the Labour Party and the Greens claim that state-owned enterprises should not be sold because taxpayers give up the future dividend stream.
Source: New Zealand Treasury – data released under the Official Information Act.
Leaving to one side what the sale price is the net present value of, for as far back as I could obtain data from the Treasury, it is a rare year in which the taxpayers does not pour more money into state-owned enterprises than they get back in dividends.
Transpower is carrying the entire state-owned enterprise portfolio. Earlier on, Solid Energy – a now bankrupt coal mining company– was carrying the portfolio in terms of cash flow to the taxpayer.
Utopia, you are standing in it! 
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