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Archive for the ‘Economics’ Category

Can we please have an adult conversation about the payroll tax?

Saturday, May 10th, 2008

Larry Kudlow, recently named the stupidest man alive by Brad DeLong, never tires of saying that it's unreasonable that wealthy people like him should have to pay the same percentage of their income in payroll taxes that working stiffs do. Kudlow marshals a number of inane arguments, among them ...

Missing the point completely

Thursday, March 13th, 2008

Without a hint of irony, on the same day, NPR did  stories on declining enrollment in computer science and Bill Gates' efforts to increase the number of H1B outsourcing visas.  Uhhh, fellas?   There's actually a correlation here.  High school seniors and their parents actually do read the paper. In related ...

Maryland moves to tax computer services

Wednesday, March 5th, 2008

NetChoice covers the bad news. In a related note, Virginia contractors are jumping for joy.  :) Will it actually go into effect? A quick Google search for Maryland Computer Tax reveals a pretty significant amount of opposition, including a snappy little site called Fight The Tech Tax. Why do politicians ...

Chris Anderson on Free

Sunday, March 2nd, 2008

We get a sneak peek at Chris Anderson's new book Free on wired.com. Free is a fact of life, and if you're a software developer like I am, you're competing with free. This is also true for other media and content developers - so instead of whining about ...

Free Shipping over $x is the ultimate upselling tool

Tuesday, February 19th, 2008

In case there was any doubt in your mind, read this New Yorker article on behavioral economics. According to behavioral economists, people reason that there's no visible possibility of loss if a "free" offer is accepted, because it's, well, free.

Tiny Malta hands cash to entrepreneurs to convert to e-commerce

Thursday, February 7th, 2008

SMEs given €12,000 tax credit to use e-commerce. What an interesting story. Go Malta! Hillary, are you listening? :)

Revenue neutral flat tax proposal

Wednesday, January 16th, 2008

Greg Mankiw thought enough of this flat tax analysis to give it some link love.    Money quote: For 2005, I come up with a tax rate of 31.85% and a deduction of $35,725. 32%, eh?  Somehow I doubt Steve Forbes would be pleased.

Mommy, where do budget deficits come from?

Sunday, January 13th, 2008

OK, now that both Artie Laffer and Greg Mankiw have come out and said that tax cuts don't pay for themselves, would Rudy please stop asserting that "he knows they do?"  I'd even be satisfied with his saying "it's only a theory."  You know, like evolution. And speaking of believing ...

Serving God and Mammon

Friday, December 21st, 2007

Fortune Small Business reviews the new film The Call of the Entrepreneur.  I was not surprised to find they thought the treatment was ham-handed; media that is generated by religious groups often feels tendentious and agenda-driven.

What does the CBO’s latest tax report show?

Wednesday, December 19th, 2007

The CBO just released its report on Historical Effective Federal Tax Rates for years up to 2005 (latest available data). It shows several interesting things: The top quintile of Americans is getting richer much faster than the bottom (Paul Krugman). In terms of calculus, the first derivative of ...