Author: cynicadmin Page 17 of 21

Supreme Court Follies

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On September 22, 2020

In Government, Politics

Harvey’s Introduction

The article explains how we got where we are with nominations of Supreme Court justices. Most importantly are the actions of the Supreme Court itself in becoming a super legislative body starting with the Roe vs Wade decision. This raised the stakes for picking judges who often gave Progressives laws they couldn’t get passed through legislators. Ted Kennedy raised the stakes with the nomination of Robert Bork and the subsequent power grabbing steps of eliminating the filibuster on appellate judges by Harry Reid. Now the Democrats are threatening to pack the court and add two Democrat states to the union.

A Jobs Bill That Boggles The Mind

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On September 18, 2020

In Government, Politics, Stuff I've Written Over The Years

Harvey’s Introduction

I wrote this opinion essay for the WSJ in 2011 to describe what I thought were inconsistencies within what President Obama called a jobs bill. Its intent was to stimulate the economy after the initial $1 trillion stimulus package failed to do so. He recognized that the recovery was not going well but his recommended solution was both wasteful and counter productive.

A Populist Argument For Eliminating The Corporate Tax

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On September 18, 2020

In Economics, Stuff I've Written Over The Years, Tax Policy

Harvey’s Introduction

This article was written early in President Obama’s second term. It points out that the Obama claim of a great recovery was wrong; the recovery was miserable. It also argues that his program for improving the economy was not working and would not work. Finally, It argues that the best way to help the economy is to eliminate the corporate tax entirely or, at least, lower the rate to competitive international levels. This finally got done in the Trump tax code revision but the cost of getting this benefit was reducing the tax burden in other areas that would have little economic impact.

How The Obama Recovery Went Wrong

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On September 18, 2020

In Economics, Government, Stuff I've Written Over The Years

Harvey’s Introduction

I wrote this article about 3 years into Obama’s first term when I got tired of the press narrative and Obama’s boasting about what a great job he did in dealing with the financial crisis. This article shows he actually did a fairly rotten job.

I Vote No Confidence in Congress

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On September 18, 2020

In Government, Politics, Stuff I've Written Over The Years

Harvey’s Introduction

I wrote this at the beginning of Obama’s first term in office. We were at the beginning of the financial crisis and I had little faith in what Congress would do to deal with the economic crisis. In this essay, I defined what I thought Congress needed to do. As I re-read this essay now, I think my suggestions are still valid. I guess the behavior of our elected officials has not improved in the last 12 years.

Globalization: Pros and Cons

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On September 18, 2020

In Economics, Stuff I've Written Over The Years

Harvey’s Introduction

During one of the perennial debates on the pros and cons of globalization, I wrote this essay on the benefits of free trade. I still believe in the points I made then. I also believe the U.S. needs to take strong action to deal with unfair trade practices and forced technology transfers.

Optimal Corporate Tax Rate: Zero

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On September 18, 2020

In Economics, Government, Politics, Stuff I've Written Over The Years, Tax Policy

Harvey’s Introduction

I’ve written a lot about our tax system and this essay deals with one aspect of our tax code – corporate tax rates. The left thinks corporations “do not pay their fair share”. Of course, their fair share is never defined. I argue that the best corporate tax rate would be zero; that would have a huge, beneficial effect on our economy. It would only be bad for politicians.

The Real Value of Stock Options

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On September 18, 2020

In Economics, Finance, Stuff I've Written Over The Years

Harvey’s Introduction

This was a technical discussion on how to handle stock options from an accounting point of view. At the time, the issue was whether stock options should be expensed. I was overruled by the accountants, but my arguments were better.

Who Says I should Pay Higher Taxes

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On September 18, 2020

In Economics, Politics, Stuff I've Written Over The Years, Tax Policy

Harvey’s Introduction

President Obama made a number of speeches about the need, as he sees it, for high income earners to pay more in taxes. Warren Buffett, a long time friend and a person I greatly admire, supported Obama’s assertion with an extraordinary example. He pointed out that his secretary had a higher income tax rate than he did and this was wrong. I thought the whole discussion was nonsense. If you read all my essays, you’ll see I dealt with this version of class warfare a number of times. When Warren made his public comment, I thought a rebuttal was in order. The number and vitriol of the letters written in response to my op ed was really interesting. I enjoyed reading all those comments at the time. My op ed in the WSJ certainly got people’s attention

FASB Plan To Eliminate Pooling Is Misguided

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On September 18, 2020

In Finance, Stuff I've Written Over The Years

Harvey’s Introduction

I wrote this article for the WSJ 20 years ago. I took on the FASB on a technical ruling concerning accounting issues in a merger. I don’t remember whether my point of view prevailed, but I guess I’ve always been somewhat cynical towards experts, since they often get upset when asked to explain their logic..

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