Comments on: Why Wait to Raise Top Tax Rates? http://lanekenworthy.net/2009/01/06/why-wait-to-raise-top-tax-rates/ Lane Kenworthy Thu, 29 Jul 2010 17:19:18 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: Ryan Baird http://lanekenworthy.net/2009/01/06/why-wait-to-raise-top-tax-rates/#comment-907 Ryan Baird Thu, 08 Jan 2009 07:59:10 +0000 http://lanekenworthy.net/?p=1455#comment-907 The real question is, (in my opinion), has Obama already made too many "political" decisions to make one think his administration will be obviously better than the last but too similar to all the rest? The real question is, (in my opinion), has Obama already made too many “political” decisions to make one think his administration will be obviously better than the last but too similar to all the rest?

]]> By: Michael Coburn http://lanekenworthy.net/2009/01/06/why-wait-to-raise-top-tax-rates/#comment-902 Michael Coburn Wed, 07 Jan 2009 17:45:14 +0000 http://lanekenworthy.net/?p=1455#comment-902 The supposed rationale/justification for tax relief on economic rent (most very high incomes are unearned economic rent) is that the private sector does a better job of investing that does the public sector. What is quite amazing to me is that the last 30 years seems to disprove that fundamentalistic binary stupidity. the erstwhile "private sector" has invested everywhere other than the United States and the results have not been pretty. The ivory tower supporters of the rich (otherwise known as the neoclassical economists) will cherry pick the classicals and screech "comparative and absolute advantage" as all the tax proceeds and the jobs swim offshore. At the same time there will be no accounting for the enforcement of IP on a worldwide scale. The beneficiaries of the world policeman refuse to pay the cost of a military that is 5 times the size of the next most imperialistic nation. "Comparative advantage" is a macro deal and it harms producers supposedly for the benefit of consumers. What gets lost in this cherry picking ideal is the fact that would be consumers must have income or they cannot benefit. So take yer pick: Proper tariffs or an extremely progressive tax system. And in either case a much broader welfare system of single payer national health insurance and a much improved pension system. The supposed rationale/justification for tax relief on economic rent (most very high incomes are unearned economic rent) is that the private sector does a better job of investing that does the public sector. What is quite amazing to me is that the last 30 years seems to disprove that fundamentalistic binary stupidity. the erstwhile “private sector” has invested everywhere other than the United States and the results have not been pretty.

The ivory tower supporters of the rich (otherwise known as the neoclassical economists) will cherry pick the classicals and screech “comparative and absolute advantage” as all the tax proceeds and the jobs swim offshore. At the same time there will be no accounting for the enforcement of IP on a worldwide scale. The beneficiaries of the world policeman refuse to pay the cost of a military that is 5 times the size of the next most imperialistic nation. “Comparative advantage” is a macro deal and it harms producers supposedly for the benefit of consumers. What gets lost in this cherry picking ideal is the fact that would be consumers must have income or they cannot benefit.

So take yer pick: Proper tariffs or an extremely progressive tax system. And in either case a much broader welfare system of single payer national health insurance and a much improved pension system.

]]> By: pgl http://lanekenworthy.net/2009/01/06/why-wait-to-raise-top-tax-rates/#comment-901 pgl Wed, 07 Jan 2009 09:58:47 +0000 http://lanekenworthy.net/?p=1455#comment-901 Well said! econospeak.blogspot.com/2009/01/raising-tax-rates-on-well-to-do-lane.html Well said!

econospeak.blogspot.com/2009/01/raising-tax-rates-on-well-to-do-lane.html

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