Posted on Wednesday, March 25th, 2009
By Amity Shlaes
Forbes column on the original meeting in London, 1933….
The upcoming G-20 meeting is not the first conference held in London several months into a new U.S. administration in the midst of an international economic crisis. International powers also met there in the summer of 1933, not long after Franklin Roosevelt’s inauguration. To review that London meeting reminds us just how badly an international conference can flop.
But to the story: The planning for that London….
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Posted on Friday, March 20th, 2009
By Amity Shlaes
Something’s right in the world and in this administration if the U.S. can have a President who makes a tape like President Obama’s Nowruz commentary. An unforgettably gracious bit of outreach that will have more effect than we can imagine.
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Posted on Wednesday, March 18th, 2009
By Amity Shlaes
Dan Yergin is doing what he did for the oil topic — heavy lifting on the substance — and taking up the task of sorting out what happened in the Great Depression. His take on Chairman Bernanke, NEC Director Summers, and Chairman of the President’s Council of Economic Advisers Christina Romer here. It’s a rough load but if anyone can lift it, Dan can.
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Posted on Wednesday, March 11th, 2009
By Amity Shlaes
New Yorkers know their taxes are going up and are thinking about whether they can handle it. The professional crowd, especially, is concerned. Why not move out?
An old column on Real Clear Markets by Steve Malanga of Manhattan Institute is worth going back to because it lets you know how very much the top earners in NYC pay relative to other taxpayers. In one recent year the top income bracket crowd, less than one percent of the taxpayers, paid one third of the state income tax.
Reason to care: the tax burden in NY is one factor that is speeding Washington’s victory and New York’s defeat in the epic competition of the capitals. The excellent Richard Florida had an optimistic piece in The Atlantic recently, where he said that “New York is much, much more than a financial center.” In terms of tax revenues, however, being a financial center matters.
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Posted on Monday, March 9th, 2009
By Amity Shlaes
There’s a real power grab going on when it comes to Administration policy on charity.
Administration’s plan to curtail charitable deduction even as federal government gives “more” to charity.
The offset is a greater federal role. That’s the distressing part.
“Gregory Helvering” has the best comment I’ve found. California’s great tax mind speaks the truth!
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