The ubiquitous Nicholas Gruen has a beaut post on the rhetoric of the tax cutters, pointing out their penchant for focusing solely on benefits. Reading his post, it struck me that the statement "lower taxes would be good" is as helpful to the public debate as the statement "it would be good if the government paid someone to come over and mow my lawn every weekend".* Both would boost economic efficiency. Neither is a persuasive policy proposal without consideration of whether the costs outweigh the benefits.
* This example is prompted by a weekend down the Great Ocean Road, where I was mildly surprised to learn that there is a company called "Aireys Inlet Mowing", but not one called "Lorne Mowing".
I’m feeling for lawn.
Remember nicholas,
The grass is always greener…
Sound like you’re just trying to ‘re-hash’ an old debate? … 😦
No need for surprise. No-one who generates their income through a mowing company could afford to base themselves in Lorne.