The tax cut America can't do without
How much should corporations pay in taxes? Published September 4, 2017
Richard W. Rahn
Articles by Richard W. Rahn
Examining slavery through real history
It is a safe bet that everyone reading this column had an ancestor who was either a slave or slaveholder. It is also no coincidence that the effort to abolish slavery on a sustained and global basis did not occur until after the advent of the industrial revolution. Persistent slavery can be found in all cultures once people ceased being exclusively hunter-gatherers. Slavery was in fact "normal" until recent times. Sudan became the last country to legally abolish it in 2007 but, although illegal, it continues to be practiced in some countries. Published August 28, 2017
The price-level dilemma
Is more inflation desirable? Those at the Federal Reserve seem to think so, and they have explicitly said their target is 2 percent, or about double the current level. Published August 21, 2017
Making the case for political fraud
Lawmakers who violate campaign pledges could lose lawsuits by donors Published August 15, 2017
Making the case for political fraud
If a political candidate asks you for a donation with a promise that he or she will do some specific act if elected and then fails to do so, should you be able to sue for fraud? Published August 14, 2017
The insurance compulsion
Venezuela is the latest global disaster caused by socialism. Over the last couple of hundred years, virtually every variety of socialism has been tried -- from communism to national socialism (Nazism) and fascism, to various varieties of "democratic socialism" -- with one common characteristic -- they all failed. Published August 7, 2017
The innovation destroyers
Which government agency has done the most to destroy innovation? The American Founders tried to create an environment to foster innovation, because they understood new inventions would increase the well-being of the citizens. And that is the reason the Constitution enabled Congress to create patents of limited duration. Published July 31, 2017
Crony capitalism against the real thing
For the past decade, a strange migration of a couple of thousand people from all over the world to Las Vegas takes place -- in the middle of July. They come -- at least most -- not to gamble and certainly not for the weather where the normal daytime temperature is a 100-plus degrees, but to participate in an event called FreedomFest. Published July 24, 2017
When legal protections begin to disappear
Do you mainly fear government or feel protected by it? The American Founders wrote a Constitution and designed a system of government that sharply limited the powers of the state --because they understood that the greatest danger to the liberty of the people was the necessary evil of government. Published July 17, 2017
Notoriously inaccurate
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projected that 21 million people would be enrolled in the Obamacare insurance exchanges by 2016, back when the bill was voted on in 2010. The actual number turned out to be about 10 million -- the projection being off by more than 100 percent. Published July 10, 2017
The anti-liberty lobby
Why do so many propose policies that undermine the never-ending quest to create a government that ensures liberty and protects person and property, as envisioned by the American Founders? Is it out of a desire for political power or ignorance of the consequences of their proposals? Published July 3, 2017
Tax reform for the real world
There is an old adage that entrepreneurs often find to be true, and that is that things take three times as long and cost three times as you much as you thought. The Republicans claim they are going to get tax reform done this year -- but this is not going to happen unless they do two necessary things. Published June 26, 2017
Breaking the monopoly on money
If mankind can figure out how to give everyone instant communication and all the world's knowledge via the smartphone, why are we not smart enough to figure out equally convenient, quick, low-cost and secure ways of paying for goods and services to everyone on the planet? Actually, we are. Published June 19, 2017
Destroying financial privacy
Do you want your relatives, friends, business competitors and government bureaucrats to know precisely how much wealth you have, in what form, and how you spend all of your money? Published June 12, 2017
The real deniers
No one knows what is going to happen 100 years from now -- what problems human beings will face and what advances they'll make. Are you willing to double your electrical bill -- to European rates -- to reduce global temperatures by two-tenths of 1 degree 100 years from now? Published June 5, 2017
Wrong questions, wrong measures
Which portion of government spending provides little or no value? The president just released his budget proposal, and the predictable chorus of complaints immediately began from those who want more spending for "whatever." Published May 29, 2017
Population death spiral
It is hard to succeed if everyone is leaving. Some of the former communist countries are suffering from a population death spiral, with double-digit population declines over the last 25 years, as can be seen in the enclosed table. Published May 22, 2017
The problem of European divergence
Despite the attempts to unify Europe into an economic and partial political whole over the past 70 years, the grand experiment is unraveling, and it increasingly looks like the Humpty Dumpty we call Europe cannot be put back together again. Parts of Europe are enjoying unparalleled freedom and prosperity, but other parts are sinking both economically and politically. What explains the growing divergence? Published May 15, 2017
Korea's economic miracle
By the time you read this, South Korea will have just elected a new president. There will be a peaceful transfer of power, coming after the previous president was impeached for corruption, but all done in proper democratic way. Few would have bet after the end of the Korean War, more than 60 years ago, that South Korea would now be a rich, developed, democratic country. Published May 8, 2017
Why the revenuers are always wrong
If you were really hungry and given the choice of half of an eight-inch pizza or a third of a twelve-inch pizza, which would you choose? Already, the normal group of know-nothings among the political class and the press are proclaiming that President Trump's proposed reduction in the corporate tax rate will only benefit the rich. The safe bet is all those folks are wrong, once again. Published May 1, 2017
