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The IRS Has Gone Rogue | Michael F. Cannon and Jonathan H. Adler | Cato Institute: Commentary: "The mere fact that a taxpayer is eligible for a tax credit can trigger tax liabilities against both the taxpayer (under the act’s “individual mandate”) and her employer (under the “employer mandate”). In 2016, these tax credits will trigger a tax of $2,085 on many families of four earning as little as $24,000. An employer with 100 workers could face a tax of $140,000 if even one of his workers is eligible for a tax credit."
"During a September 23, 2009, committee markup of his bill, Baucus acknowledged that restricting tax credits to policies purchased through state-created exchanges was the reason the Finance Committee had jurisdiction to direct states to establish exchanges, making this language an essential part of the bill."
Tuesday, October 09, 2012
MARTA Hardly Indispensable | Randal O'Toole | Cato Institute: Commentary
MARTA Hardly Indispensable | Randal O'Toole | Cato Institute: Commentary: "Before MARTA took over the transit system, nearly 11 percent of Atlanta-area commuters took transit to work. Now, thanks to MARTA’s investment in high-cost rail at the expense of low-cost bus improvements, transit’s share of commuting has fallen to slightly more than 4 percent. That hardly helps to reduce congestion, air pollution, and all the other things transit is claimed to do."
Stop Demonizing Job Creators | Daniel J. Ikenson | Cato Institute: Commentary
Stop Demonizing Job Creators | Daniel J. Ikenson | Cato Institute: Commentary: " the highest corporate income tax rate among all of the world's industrialized countries and the unusual requirement that profits earned abroad by U.S. multinationals are subject to U.S. taxation upon repatriation. No other major economy does that. Who in their right minds would not expect those incentives to encourage moving production off shore and keeping profits there?"
"If Levin is concerned about diminishing federal tax collections from corporations (which, of course, reduces his power), the solution is to change the incentives — to change the convoluted artifice of backroom politics that is our present tax code."
"If Levin is concerned about diminishing federal tax collections from corporations (which, of course, reduces his power), the solution is to change the incentives — to change the convoluted artifice of backroom politics that is our present tax code."
English for All, Freedom for None - Danny Hieber - Mises Daily
English for All, Freedom for None - Danny Hieber - Mises Daily: "The colonial statist Benjamin Franklin penned in 1753,
They come in droves.… Few of their children in the country learn English.… Advertisements intended for to be general are now printed in Dutch and English, the signs in Our Streets have inscriptions in both languages, and in some places only German, they began of late all their bonds and other legal writings in their own language, which (tho' I think it ought not to be) are allowed good in Our Courts.[3]"
"93.6 percent of all children of immigrants spoke English well or very well.[6] As I detailed in my Mises Daily "Why Languages Die," this is the standard process of language shift. By the third generation, all trace of the heritage language is gone. If this were not the case, it would be difficult to explain why Dutch, German, Italian, or other major immigrant languages in the States haven't spawned lasting communities of monolingual speakers. Even places like Chinatown in New York City only retain a persistent heritage language presence because they are continually resupplied by new immigrants. But the children of those immigrants continue to learn English, and their children continue to never learn the heritage language in the first place, making them English monolinguals."
"this is precisely the case for Puerto Rican immigrants in New York City, who because their parents were told by school administrators not to speak Spanish to their kids at home, grew up unable to socialize well in either English or Spanish, and are now at a distinct social and economic disadvantage in both.[13] Today, this segment of the immigrant population remains statistically among the most impoverished in the country, for largely this reason. Yet no one predicted this pernicious and unseen effect of such language policies."
They come in droves.… Few of their children in the country learn English.… Advertisements intended for to be general are now printed in Dutch and English, the signs in Our Streets have inscriptions in both languages, and in some places only German, they began of late all their bonds and other legal writings in their own language, which (tho' I think it ought not to be) are allowed good in Our Courts.[3]"
"93.6 percent of all children of immigrants spoke English well or very well.[6] As I detailed in my Mises Daily "Why Languages Die," this is the standard process of language shift. By the third generation, all trace of the heritage language is gone. If this were not the case, it would be difficult to explain why Dutch, German, Italian, or other major immigrant languages in the States haven't spawned lasting communities of monolingual speakers. Even places like Chinatown in New York City only retain a persistent heritage language presence because they are continually resupplied by new immigrants. But the children of those immigrants continue to learn English, and their children continue to never learn the heritage language in the first place, making them English monolinguals."
"this is precisely the case for Puerto Rican immigrants in New York City, who because their parents were told by school administrators not to speak Spanish to their kids at home, grew up unable to socialize well in either English or Spanish, and are now at a distinct social and economic disadvantage in both.[13] Today, this segment of the immigrant population remains statistically among the most impoverished in the country, for largely this reason. Yet no one predicted this pernicious and unseen effect of such language policies."
Means Testing Your Social Security Payments - Gary North - Mises Daily
Means Testing Your Social Security Payments - Gary North - Mises Daily: "If Medicare's age of eligibility were raised, the premiums of all health-insurance policy owners would rise. This will be fought by the insurance industry. It will also be fought by the geezer lobbies. "
"The budget killer is Medicare. This is because the subsidy is the largest: almost $12,000 a year."
"At some point, there will be means-testing. The politicians will decide that anyone with an income above a certain rate will have his payments reduced. The more his income, the greater the reductions. At first, this cap will apply to earned income. Then it will be applied to all income."
"When it is clear that rich people who have paid into Social Security are costing the taxpayers billions of dollars, there will be bills introduced into Congress similar to the ones introduced on unemployment insurance payments to millionaires."
"The budget killer is Medicare. This is because the subsidy is the largest: almost $12,000 a year."
"At some point, there will be means-testing. The politicians will decide that anyone with an income above a certain rate will have his payments reduced. The more his income, the greater the reductions. At first, this cap will apply to earned income. Then it will be applied to all income."
"When it is clear that rich people who have paid into Social Security are costing the taxpayers billions of dollars, there will be bills introduced into Congress similar to the ones introduced on unemployment insurance payments to millionaires."
Giving Florida Firms First Dibs on Bids Stifles Competition, Quality | Daniel J. Ikenson | Cato Institute: Commentary
Giving Florida Firms First Dibs on Bids Stifles Competition, Quality | Daniel J. Ikenson | Cato Institute: Commentary: "As of July 1, Tallahassee is required to grant preferences to in-state companies when considering bids to procure commodities and finished goods."
"when we artificially reduce the size of markets by law or regulation or some arbitrary boundary, we reduce the scope for specialization, competition and economies of scale, which are the ingredients of value and wealth creation, economic growth and increased living standards."
"contracts denied numerous other companies because the state's resources have been stretched and depleted to satisfy the in-state preference rules."
"when we artificially reduce the size of markets by law or regulation or some arbitrary boundary, we reduce the scope for specialization, competition and economies of scale, which are the ingredients of value and wealth creation, economic growth and increased living standards."
"contracts denied numerous other companies because the state's resources have been stretched and depleted to satisfy the in-state preference rules."
Advocates Need to Make the Important Case for Free Trade | Simon Lester | Cato Institute: Commentary
Advocates Need to Make the Important Case for Free Trade | Simon Lester | Cato Institute: Commentary: "There is no doubt that exports are good for domestic producers, but imports are just as beneficial, if not more so, to domestic consumers. Import competition leads to lower prices, higher quality and a greater variety of goods and services to choose from. "
"Being for "free and fair" trade is kind of like being for both war and peace. While the terms are used flexibly, under most definitions "free trade" is not really compatible with "fair trade." For those who advocate fair trade (there are a number of versions, but all are similar), free trade is not fair. And for those who support free trade (at its core, this means not using protectionism), fair trade is not free."
"Being for "free and fair" trade is kind of like being for both war and peace. While the terms are used flexibly, under most definitions "free trade" is not really compatible with "fair trade." For those who advocate fair trade (there are a number of versions, but all are similar), free trade is not fair. And for those who support free trade (at its core, this means not using protectionism), fair trade is not free."
The Afghan Surge: Operation Disarray? | Malou Innocent | Cato Institute: Commentary
The Afghan Surge: Operation Disarray? | Malou Innocent | Cato Institute: Commentary: "The US military has been tireless in its efforts, and yet Afghanistan, as a whole, is no more law-abiding, democratic or stable than it was before the surge."
"the coalition’s kill and capture campaign against mid-level commanders has weakened the leadership’s grip on the chain of command. Some of these higher-ups, however, were more open to peace talks. Younger insurgents opposed to a political settlement are now moving into leadership positions and are increasingly influenced by Al Qaeda’s worldview."
"the coalition’s kill and capture campaign against mid-level commanders has weakened the leadership’s grip on the chain of command. Some of these higher-ups, however, were more open to peace talks. Younger insurgents opposed to a political settlement are now moving into leadership positions and are increasingly influenced by Al Qaeda’s worldview."
The Afghan Surge: Operation Disarray? | Malou Innocent | Cato Institute: Commentary
The Afghan Surge: Operation Disarray? | Malou Innocent | Cato Institute: Commentary: "The US military has been tireless in its efforts, and yet Afghanistan, as a whole, is no more law-abiding, democratic or stable than it was before the surge."
"the coalition’s kill and capture campaign against mid-level commanders has weakened the leadership’s grip on the chain of command. Some of these higher-ups, however, were more open to peace talks. Younger insurgents opposed to a political settlement are now moving into leadership positions and are increasingly influenced by Al Qaeda’s worldview."
"the coalition’s kill and capture campaign against mid-level commanders has weakened the leadership’s grip on the chain of command. Some of these higher-ups, however, were more open to peace talks. Younger insurgents opposed to a political settlement are now moving into leadership positions and are increasingly influenced by Al Qaeda’s worldview."
America's Vanishing Economic Freedom | Michael D. Tanner | Cato Institute: Commentary
America's Vanishing Economic Freedom | Michael D. Tanner | Cato Institute: Commentary: "For 20 years the U.S. had consistently ranked as one of the world’s three freest economies, along with Hong Kong and Singapore. By the end of the Bush presidency, we were barely in the top ten."
"As recently as 2005, the U.S. ranked 45th in size of government among the 144 nations surveyed. That was bad enough, but it still had us in the top third of the 144 countries surveyed. Today, government has grown dramatically, and our ranking has fallen to 61st place."
"As recently as 2005, the U.S. ranked 45th in size of government among the 144 nations surveyed. That was bad enough, but it still had us in the top third of the 144 countries surveyed. Today, government has grown dramatically, and our ranking has fallen to 61st place."
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