Yes, Krugman, maybe we should have Singapore's tax rates

In calling for higher taxes, Paul Krugman now is trying to claim that if the U.S. Government increases taxes on some people, that will help lead us out of the depression. Now, it would be the first time in human history that increasing taxes brought economic recovery, but in Wonderland (and the Princeton University economics department), anything is possible.

In his latest column, Krugman demands higher taxes on "the rich" (of which category multi-millionaire Krugman resides), Krugman calls for a financial transactions tax, writing:

And it’s instructive, too, to note that some countries already have financial transactions taxes — and that among those who do are Hong Kong and Singapore. If some conservative starts claiming that such taxes are an unwarranted government intrusion, you might want to ask him why such taxes are imposed by the two countries that score highest on the Heritage Foundation’s Index of Economic Freedom.

It is interesting that he brings up Singapore, where Jim Rogers now lives, for Singapore is NOT in the same depression the USA wallows, and here are some facts about Singapore's taxes:

• Singapore has NO taxes on capital gains (and Krugman demands that Congress raise capital gains taxes);
• Sinapore's corporate income rate is a flat 17 percent;
• Singapore's income tax rates are substantially lower than U.S. rates.

So, Krugman justifies a proposed tax on financial transactions because Singapore does it, but then fails to inform readers that Singapore has tax rates that would enrage any U.S. "Progressive" like Krugman. (Interestingly, the USA has some of the highest corporate income taxes in the world, but they are not low enough for Krugman.) For that matter, tax rates in Hong Kong, both corporate and individual, are substantially lower than U.S. rates. (And Hong Kong has no tax on capital gains.)

So, once again we see Krugman being deceitful, claiming that because Hong Kong and Singapore tax financial transactions, we should do it to. However, Krugman fails to add that neither Hong Kong nor Singapore have the punitive taxes on income, corporate profits, and capital gains that we have in this country -- and Krugman demands that they be made even more draconian.

Perhaps Americans should understand why people like Jim Rogers have moved their families and their money from this country. The USA has political leadership that insists on military adventures, wasteful government spending on "alternative energy," a criminal "justice" system that is out-of-control at both federal and state levels, and an anti-business culture among its "Progressive" elites.

What does this mean? It means that there will be no economic recovery in the years to come. Paul Krugman really wants us to believe that if the U.S. Government both jacks up tax rates and spending (perhaps preparing for that fictitious showdown against Krugman's "space ailens"), that the end result will be prosperity. That simply is not going to happen.

Just because Krugman has made millions of dollars calling for expansion of state power does not mean expansion of state power is a good thing. As we are going to find out in the coming years, the countries where Keynesian economics is practiced are going to be those countries with declining economies and declining standards of living.