Robert P. Murphy
Business & Economics
Taxifornia
California’s tax system, comparisons with other states, and the path to reform in the Golden State San FranciscoThe Pacific Research Institute (PRI), a free-market think tank based in San Francisco, found that California ranked dead last in a combined measure of the state’s tax burden and tax structure according to ...
Business & Economics
What do we get in return for our taxes?
As Tax Day approaches, Americans rummage for misplaced receipts and dread any letters from the Internal Revenue Service. Most Americans remain unaware that for almost a century America got along just fine with no federal income tax at all. To help fund the Civil War, the federal government introduced its ...
Commentary
Higher taxes ahead
The Obama administration continues to push for health care reform and other measures that will require higher taxes. But is such activism largely to blame for the prolonged economic slump? Robert Miller says the government can create jobs by throwing money at but the question is where do those resources ...
Climate Change
A changing political climate on climate change
Despite intense, sometimes contentious negotiations — most recently at a meeting of world leaders in Denmark — the likelihood of a binding deal on global carbon emissions appears remote. Virtually all nations agree about the potential severity of climate change, but tremendous apprehension remains about how best to fight global ...
Business & Economics
Another Roosevelt? More like Barack Hoover
President Obama has been talking tough on deficit reduction, but many left-leaning pundits and economists warn that such rhetoric will prolong the economic slump. MSNBC host Rachel Maddow warned that Obamas proposed partial spending freeze was Herbert Hoovers strategy, while Budget Director Peter Orszag cautioned that FDRs attempt in 1937 ...
Business & Economics
‘Jobs’ bills: Why they fizzle
California’s unemployment rate is more than 12 percent, prompting state Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg’s new plan to create some 140,000 jobs. The plan, unfortunately, has a problem. Steinberg’s plan consists of several measures, each expected to create a specific number of jobs. Yet when tallying up the number ...
Business & Economics
Uncertainty about government to blame for sluggish job growth
Dear Editor: The U.S. economy shed another 85,000 jobs in December, when most analysts had expected no change or even slight job creation. Meanwhile, the Obama administration continues to push for healthcare reform and other measures that will require higher taxes. Ironically, it is the federal government’s policy activism itself ...
Business & Economics
Setting the stage for stagflation
Prices rose 2.7 percent during 2009, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ recent update of the Consumer Price Index (CPI). This is a worrisome fact because last year’s unemployment rate averaged more than 9 percent. This trend may signal a return of “stagflation,” a merger of stagnation and inflation. ...
Business & Economics
Uncertainty about government creates sluggishness
The economy shed 85,000 jobs in December, to the surprise of most analysts. Meanwhile, the Obama administration continues to push for health care reform and other measures that will require higher taxes. But such activism is largely to blame for the prolonged economic slump. Some politicians speak of creating jobs ...
Business & Economics
Deflation delusion
Commentary: We’re in the midst of moderate stagflation NASHVILLE, Tenn. (MarketWatch) — The federal government recently reported that consumer prices had risen in November for the fourth straight month, thanks largely to big jumps in the price of gasoline and oil. Nevertheless, the Federal Reserve and many commentators have dismissed ...
Taxifornia
California’s tax system, comparisons with other states, and the path to reform in the Golden State San FranciscoThe Pacific Research Institute (PRI), a free-market think tank based in San Francisco, found that California ranked dead last in a combined measure of the state’s tax burden and tax structure according to ...
What do we get in return for our taxes?
As Tax Day approaches, Americans rummage for misplaced receipts and dread any letters from the Internal Revenue Service. Most Americans remain unaware that for almost a century America got along just fine with no federal income tax at all. To help fund the Civil War, the federal government introduced its ...
Higher taxes ahead
The Obama administration continues to push for health care reform and other measures that will require higher taxes. But is such activism largely to blame for the prolonged economic slump? Robert Miller says the government can create jobs by throwing money at but the question is where do those resources ...
A changing political climate on climate change
Despite intense, sometimes contentious negotiations — most recently at a meeting of world leaders in Denmark — the likelihood of a binding deal on global carbon emissions appears remote. Virtually all nations agree about the potential severity of climate change, but tremendous apprehension remains about how best to fight global ...
Another Roosevelt? More like Barack Hoover
President Obama has been talking tough on deficit reduction, but many left-leaning pundits and economists warn that such rhetoric will prolong the economic slump. MSNBC host Rachel Maddow warned that Obamas proposed partial spending freeze was Herbert Hoovers strategy, while Budget Director Peter Orszag cautioned that FDRs attempt in 1937 ...
‘Jobs’ bills: Why they fizzle
California’s unemployment rate is more than 12 percent, prompting state Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg’s new plan to create some 140,000 jobs. The plan, unfortunately, has a problem. Steinberg’s plan consists of several measures, each expected to create a specific number of jobs. Yet when tallying up the number ...
Uncertainty about government to blame for sluggish job growth
Dear Editor: The U.S. economy shed another 85,000 jobs in December, when most analysts had expected no change or even slight job creation. Meanwhile, the Obama administration continues to push for healthcare reform and other measures that will require higher taxes. Ironically, it is the federal government’s policy activism itself ...
Setting the stage for stagflation
Prices rose 2.7 percent during 2009, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ recent update of the Consumer Price Index (CPI). This is a worrisome fact because last year’s unemployment rate averaged more than 9 percent. This trend may signal a return of “stagflation,” a merger of stagnation and inflation. ...
Uncertainty about government creates sluggishness
The economy shed 85,000 jobs in December, to the surprise of most analysts. Meanwhile, the Obama administration continues to push for health care reform and other measures that will require higher taxes. But such activism is largely to blame for the prolonged economic slump. Some politicians speak of creating jobs ...
Deflation delusion
Commentary: We’re in the midst of moderate stagflation NASHVILLE, Tenn. (MarketWatch) — The federal government recently reported that consumer prices had risen in November for the fourth straight month, thanks largely to big jumps in the price of gasoline and oil. Nevertheless, the Federal Reserve and many commentators have dismissed ...
