Be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful. – Warren Buffett Buffett uses this mantra every day, along with his two other ground rules for running his investment firm Berkshire Hathaway: So why does the 90-year-old legendary investor hold these core mantras? One possible answer can be found by considering the history of investment bubbles. One of the first recognised “bubbles” … Continue reading Forever blowing bubbles
The art of taxation consists in so plucking the goose as to obtain the largest possible amount of feathers with the smallest possible amount of hissing. – Jean-Baptiste Colbert, Finance Minister to Louis XIV Starting in early 2020, life as we knew it came to a stop, as governments around the world locked up their countries to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. The resulting economic impact … Continue reading A New Wealth Tax for the UK: Delicately Plucking the Golden Goose
Since 1896, when global warming was first publicly shown to be a consequence of burning fossil fuels, humanity has wrestled with the conundrum of how best to respond to this looming threat. Against the background of politicisation associated with climate change, economists have argued over the benefits and detriments of introducing a carbon tax: a way of taxing companies which emit greenhouse gases so as … Continue reading Should a form of Carbon Pricing be introduced in the US?
Cees Armstrong and I had the pleasure of interviewing Professor Sunstein, the Robert Walmsley Professor at Harvard Law School. Professor Sunstein is the best-selling author of many books, including the critically acclaimed Nudge, as well as the most cited law scholar of all time. He now works with the US government. Continue reading An interview with Professor Cass Sunstein: Nudges, economic systems, and freedom
The phrase “time of crisis and shortage” is certainly applicable to the coronavirus pandemic; it refers to a period of difficulty where specific items cannot be obtained in sufficient amounts due to shortages in quantity supplied. This may encourage societal inequalities. For example, in order to prevent a future lack of essential goods, higher income earners are better placed to “hoard” such goods, as the … Continue reading Price Controls on Essentials During the Pandemic
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