Relevant and even prescient commentary on news, politics and the economy.

Discouraging Greg Mankiw From Working Would be Good for the Economy

by Mike Kimel Discouraging Greg Mankiw From Working Would be Good for the EconomyCross posted at the the Presimetrics blog. A few days ago Greg Mankiw had an op ed piece in the NY Times talking about how even small increases in the marginal tax rate would keep him (and by extension, other talented folks […]

Corporate Tax Rates and Unemployment, A Correction

by Mike Kimel Corporate Tax Rates and Unemployment, A Correction Cross posted at the Presimetrics blog. — I’m embarrassed. I messed up last week’s post which appeared at Angry Bear and on the Presimetrics blog. Essentially, I copied in some of the data on tax rates incorrect for three years in the late 1970s; the […]

Hey, Big Spenders… (Status Report on Presimetrics)

by Mike Kimel Update: Rdan here Take the quiz now…hey big spenders Status Report on Presimetrics The Intelligence Report column in Parade Magazine, the newspaper that appears in Sunday newspapers across the country, wrote a short quiz based on Presimetrics. It will appear in this Sunday’s issue. Michael Kanell and I will log in to […]

The Messenger Again Wears A Skirt

op-ed by Run “The Messenger Again Wears A Skirt (Mama Tucker on Brooksley Born)” Taking a page from his former boss and mentor Larry Summers, Geithner behind closed doors has expressed opposition to Dr. Elizabeth Warren heading up the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau as reported by The Huffington Post. For those of you who may […]

Tax Burdens and Economic Growth – Answering the Objections

by Mike Kimel Tax Burdens and Economic Growth – Answering the Objections This piece is cross-posted with the Presimetrics Blog. Consistent with findings in Presimetrics, the book I wrote with Michael Kanell which will be released in August, I’ve had some posts whose results contradict standard economic theory. In some cases, readers have insisted that […]

Taxes and Private Sector Investment – Evidence from the Real World

by Mike KimelCross-posted on the Presimetrics blog. Taxes and Private Sector Investment – Evidence from the Real WorldLast week I had a post (which appeared both here and at Angry Bear). The post included the following graph: Figure 1 The graph looks at every eight year period since 1929 (the first year for which National […]

Presidents, the Tax Burden and Corruption – Explaining Economic Growth

by Mike Kimel This post appeared in the Presimetrics blog. Presidents, the Tax Burden and Corruption – Explaining Economic Growth One of the topics we cover in Presimetrics is the relationship between the tax burden (i.e., the share of income going to taxes) and economic growth. As shown also in a recent post, Presidents who […]

Presidents, the Tax Burden, and Economic Growth

by Mike Kimel Presidents, the Tax Burden, and Economic Growth This post also appears at the Presimetrics Blog. It contains some information that has appeared in a few different Angry Bear posts, but I think I’m starting to manage to put it into a more coherent narrative. And as I’m able to do that, I’m […]

CDS again

Robert Waldmann People are talking about regulating credit default swaps (CDS) . They include Collin Petersen D-Minn who proposes making it illegal to own a CDS without owning the underlying instrument (this is absolutely standard for other kinds of insurance). and George Soros who supports the proposal.(via Felix Salmon) A problem, I think, is that […]

The Most Recent Tax Deferral and Social Security: Dean Speaks, You Listen

In their coverage of that $70 billion addition to the Federal debt, the Washington Post adds: House Majority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) said that holding the line on spending while allowing the low tax rates to spur the economy will close the gap. But the spending problem lies not so much with the federal […]