U.S. lovers of high taxes frequently refer nostalgically to the glories of the Eisenhower years, when the top rate of tax was 91%, claiming their prosperity proves there to be no negative supply-side effects from high income tax rates. But if you look at the data more closely, the U.S. economy of the Eisenhower years […]

President Obama’s intransigence on economic matters is increasingly clear, so compromise seems unlikely and a succession of tax increases and wasteful spending programs seems inevitable. Meanwhile Ben Bernanke’s Fed enables this dangerous course by massive “quantitative easing.” Assuming Bernanke is succeeded by a like-minded colleague (more on that below) we will thus suffer this economically […]

Richard Nixon, whose centenary was marked last week (born January 9, 1913), is generally regarded as a very flawed President. In terms of domestic economic policy, it’s tough to argue with this; we are still paying the price of the big-government regulatory excrescences introduced under his tenure. Internationally his record is much better; it can […]

All major industries go through an innovation life cycle. They provide a fundamentally new product or service when they at first appear, then as their use becomes more widespread their changes to the world become even more fundamental. Later on however, while capital flows to them in vast profusion, their innovations become more marginal, although […]