New Research Confirms Wealth Tax’s Deleterious Effects
A wealth tax has many problems. While it makes for great “soak the rich” soundbites, in reality, it’s ineffective at reducing inequality. What wealth taxes do best is to...
About: Veronique de Rugy
Posts by Veronique de Rugy
When Mob Mentality and Moral Suasion Meet the Markets
What is the proper role of moral suasion on commerce? It’s easy to see the benefits for all involved if firms start waiting a little before dismissing employees under...
State and Local Governments Could Learn From Crises
There's no doubt that this pandemic-induced recession is hitting states hard. But that's no reason to bail them out, especially when many failed to prepare for emergencies, which are...
A Legal Challenge to the Big Apple’s Newest Rent-Control Laws
There are reasons to celebrate when someone steps in and challenges bad rules. Case in point: a legal challenge to New York City’s Rent Stabilization Law. ...
As Bastiat Would Say, Peer Past the Obvious With Pandemic Policies
Oh, how I wish we would have remembered to earnestly account for the unseen effects of policies put into place during this pandemic that will pop up in its...
Is a Universal Basic Income Program Worth the Costs?
A guaranteed income may or may not be an improvement over the current state of affairs, but either way, a massive wealth transfer and regulatory state harms the poor....
A Dollar by Any Other Name Would Spend the Same
One of the new ways critics like to slice and dice rich people these days is to question the value they provide to others by minimizing the importance of...
Turning 50 in a Time of Pandemic
While I’ll always have slight regret about not having my party as planned, my birthday weekend was way better than it would have been without this pandemic. ...
Economics, a San Francisco Treat?
If politicians in San Francisco really want to help their citizens, they may want to brush up on basic economics. That would be a treat. ...
We Need a New Base Realignment and Closure Commission — Not a New Bureaucracy
In times of crisis like the one we are now going through, calls to grow an already-bloated bureaucracy abound. A better alternative is to continue the deregulatory trend that...
Frivolous Litigators Bite the Hands That Care for Them
The threat of the lawsuits might obstruct the response of medical professionals who are fighting on the front lines against COVID-19. ...
Coronavirus Puts Counterproductive Regulations Into Perspective
As dangerous as the expansion of government power due to COVID-19 is, in some ways, federal, state and local governments are also reducing their intrusions into our lives by...
Creativity and Compassion Continue to Combat the Coronavirus
News about the impact and death toll of the new coronavirus, COVID-19, is constant. Yet we shouldn’t lose sight of the exceptional vitality that the private sector is demonstrating...
Supply and Demand, Hoarding, Price Gouging — and the Coronavirus
As the saying goes, “Nothing is certain but death and taxes.” I would add, “and anti-price gouging legislation in times of crisis.” ...
Paid Leave and the Composition of Compensation
There are many poor arguments for mandated paid leave out there, many of which, unfortunately, demonstrate that facts and sound economics are, in this debate, too often optional. ...