David Hebert
Understanding Trade Balances and What to Do About Them
Prior to 1976, the United States experienced modest trade surpluses. Since then, the US has seen nothing but trade deficits.
An External Revenue Service?
President-elect Donald Trump has floated the idea of creating an External Revenue Service, which he claims will be used to “collect our Tariffs, Duties, and all Revenue that come from […]
Why the US Grows While the EU Slows: Adam Smith’s Recipe
What explains the curious lack of economic progress in the EU over the past 16 years? In 2008, the economies of the European Union and the United States were roughly […]
Why Are There No Trillion-Dollar Companies in Europe?
Europe is a wonderfully diverse continent, with 44 countries, each with its own rich (and long) history and unique constellation of policies. Despite this, though, there are no trillion-dollar companies […]
Resource Allocation: Why You Can’t ‘Just Ignore the Economists’
“Rather than paying with money, those in search of scarce goods people will pay with their time and effort.” ~David Hebert
Minimum Wages Wreak Labor Havoc
“They arrogantly believe that this time will be different; that their version of a minimum wage will work where every other has failed. Unfortunately, this is what every previous lawmaker believed, too.” ~David Hebert
Want to Pay More Tax? You Can
“Congress has also budgeted for $1.7 trillion of deficit spending for the current fiscal year; over 26,000 times as much money as has been donated to the Gifts to Reduce the Public Debt account over the past 29 years combined.” ~David Hebert
Trump, Tariffs, and Income Taxes
“Perhaps Trump’s goal is simply to eliminate the federal income tax. If so, then he should advocate for doing that and only that. Eliminating the income tax would, in fact, make Americans richer in after-tax dollars.” ~David Hebert
Trade Deficits: Accounting Masquerading as Economics
“Reducing ‘imports’ would not, in fact, increase GDP at all. At best, doing so would leave GDP unchanged since we would be adding less to consumption, investment, and government spending while subtracting equally less from imports.” ~David Hebert
Taxes, Spending, and Powerball Winnings
“A system that rewards our elected officials for spending today, without regard to the future costs, inevitably leads to one conclusion: ever-growing public debt. The current debt crisis is no mystery.” ~ David Hebert
