In my last post, I said that it would be good if the US imposed a consumption tax such as the value-added tax (VAT). Critics generally say that these kinds of taxes are bad because they are “regressive.” While it is true that they are regressive under the way that word is generally used, that… Continue reading Why Consumption Taxes are Fine
Author: Matt Bruenig
The VAT Tax
A value-added tax (VAT) is a consumption tax. It is not meaningfully different from a sales tax except in the way that it is collected. Donald Trump is reportedly considering a value-added tax as part of his tax plan. It seems unlikely that such a tax would pass into law given the current Congress. But… Continue reading The VAT Tax
College Degrees for Child Care?
According to the Washington Post, DC is now requiring child care workers to have a college degree: More than a decade after Washington, D.C., set out to create the most comprehensive public preschool system in the country, the city is directing its attention to overhauling the patchwork of programs that serve infants and toddlers. The… Continue reading College Degrees for Child Care?
Are Boomers Really Doing Well?
I was inspired by this piece in the Boston Globe about how the Boomers have ruined everything to go into the Survey of Consumer Finances and see just how well the Boomers are actually doing, at least as far as wealth goes. The answer, as with all things, is that it depends on what class… Continue reading Are Boomers Really Doing Well?
Nickel-and-dime socialism
Socialism is the idea that capital (the means of production) should be owned collectively. There are divergent ideas about how to achieve this in reality. One approach is to have the government hold it collectively in social wealth funds. This is (more or less) the socialism of Yanis Varoufakis, Rudolf Meidner, and John E. Roemer.… Continue reading Nickel-and-dime socialism