Wall Street Journal (May 4)
What accounts for the landslide victory of Stephen Harper’s Conservative Party on Monday? The Journal thinks the success is due to the conservative economic policies that Harper has put in place since 2006. “Canada’s general sales tax fell to 5% from 7%. Mr. Harper has also cut the federal corporate tax rate, which is now 16.5% and is scheduled to fall to 15% in 2012.” To be sure, Canada also benefited from oil and mineral deposits, which helped boost GDP growth beyond that of the U.S. Moreover, Harper has pledged to “balance the budget by fiscal 2014-2015 without raising taxes, which was a clear dividing line in the recent campaign.”
Washington Post (March 8)
Oil again crossed the $100 per barrel threshold. The price hike isn’t entirely bad. It may “spur conservation and stimulate domestic oil production, thus rendering the country less vulnerable to future oil shocks.” The 1973 oil crisis certainly did. The U.S. economy now “consumes less than half as much petroleum and natural gas per dollar of economic output as it did.” In fact, the Post would welcome higher gasoline taxes to encourage “sensible long-term conservation measures.”
Tags: Conservation, Energy, Oil, Tax
New Zealand Herald (March 2)
While much of the world is fighting higher taxes, New Zealanders are open to a temporary tax to help fund the reconstruction of Christchurch. We “are prepared to be taxed for Christchurch’s sake. This is a rare sentiment in public opinion, but completely understandable after a disaster such as this. The rest of the country stands ready to help.”
Tags: Christchurch, Disaster, New Zealand, Tax
Wall Street Journal (January 6)
“Looks like it’s almost time for another change of leader in Tokyo, which is becoming the Italy of Asia.” The WSJ makes this prediction based on Prime Minister Naoto Kan’s divisive attempts to force Ichiro Ozawa out of the DPJ and increase the consumption tax. The newspaper also makes another unwelcome international comparison. The next Prime Minister will “have to tackle Japan’s problems before unpleasant outcomes are forced upon it. Without cuts to entitlements and tax cuts to promote growth, Tokyo will continue turning into Athens.”
“Looks like it’s almost time for another change of leader in Tokyo, which is becoming the Italy of Asia.” The WSJ makes this prediction based on Prime Minister Naoto Kan’s divisive attempts to force Ichiro Ozawa out of the DPJ and increase in the consumption tax. The newspaper also makes another unwelcome international comparison. The next Prime Minister will “have to tackle Japan’s problems before unpleasant outcomes are forced upon it. Without cuts to entitlements and tax cuts to promote growth, Tokyo will continue turning into Athens.”
Wall Street Journal (July 10)
Japan’s election results delivered a clear message from unhappy voters: “no tax hikes, please.” Had Prime Minister Naoto Kan stopped with his “idea of slashing Japan’s corporate-tax rate, the highest in the developed world, to attract investment,” the results of the election might have been different. Instead voters were “revolted” by his subsequent call to double the current 5% consumption tax “when government spending remains out of control and economic growth is weak.”
Financial Times (July 8)
The year has been disappointing in terms of taking action against the serious threat of climate change. The Financial Times, however, promotes a twin opportunity. Governments can both repair their budgets and the climate. “As treasuries look for ways to raise more revenues, climate change activists should make the case for green taxes.”
Tags: Climate change, Deficit, Government, Tax
The Los Angeles Times (July 5)
2010 is the year to throw grandma off the train. That is, if she lives in the U.S. In 2010 only, there is no estate tax on inheritance. The estate tax expired in 2009. From 2011, estates exceeding $1 million will again be taxed. Dan Duncan became the first billionaire to die during this one-year window. His heirs will not pay taxes on their windfall. The Los Angeles Times opinion piece argues that taxing inheritance is very important for the health of a society, especially in the U.S. where “the wealthiest 1% of Americans own more than 33% of the country’s wealth.”
The Wall Street Journal (July 4)
The Wall Street Journal supports Naoto Kan’s pledge to lower the corporate tax rate from 40% to about 25%, but questions the wisdom of increasing the consumption tax to 10% while Japan’s economy continues on a deflationary trajectory.
New York Times (June 29)
The world is “now conducting a dangerous experiment.” An article by David Leonhardt compares current moves to cut government spending and raise taxes with what happened during the Great Depression, when the fragile recovery was upset. Though there are striking similarities, there is room to hope that “today’s situation is different enough to assure a different outcome.”
Tags: Government spending, Great Depression, Recovery, Tax
