4 ms·
> Why not just lower the tax rate for corporations altogether And use market pricing mechanisms? To what end? An efficient market? You madman! How will we be a
by fennecfoxen 5y ago
> Why not just lower the tax rate for corporations altogether
And use market pricing mechanisms? To what end? An efficient market? You madman! How will we be able to consolidate our power and command hefty campaign contributions if we cannot pick winners and losers, rewarding our supporters while meting out punishment to those who dare oppose us?
If we go down this road, moreover, we might then have to admit that, besides taxes, our regulations and our multi-decade environmental reviews are there to cause problems, not just to solve them — that safety, pollution, justice, are all well and good themselves, but even more importantly, they are tools for us to express political favor and disfavor, to bend society to our will, and our advantage.
No. We must feed the machine. Shakedowns today, shakedowns tomorrow; shakedowns forever.
- ajmadesc 5y agoYeah but how does a society deal with negative externalities like poisoning the water table, ecosystem destruction etc
- EarthLaunch 5y agoOne way is making the areas damaged into property. If you own land, you generally don’t want it polluted because it would lower the value. In those examples, make the water table and ecosystems into something people can own in portions. This is done with “views” that skyscrapers would otherwise block. Should be done with orbits to prevent space debris. The trouble is it seems impossible to turn certain externalities into property. It would require hard thinking and innovation. And just like regulations, it would lag behind industry and miss unknowns (lead, micro plastics).
- treeman79 5y agoOh my, next people will do basic research (https://www.amazon.com/Basic-Economics-Thomas-Sowell/dp/0465060730 https://www.amazon.com/Basic-Economics-Thomas-Sowell/dp/0465... ) and start making sane decisions.