Richard W. Rahn
Articles by Richard W. Rahn
Removing statues and monuments to historic figures makes no sense
"The hell with it! There ain't no sin and there ain't no virtue. There's just stuff people do. It's all part of the same thing. And some of the things folks do is nice, and some ain't nice, but that's as far as any man got a right to say." Published July 8, 2019
The Founders’ fears were justified as Democratic presidential candidates demonstrate
If the world as we know it is going to end in 12 years, should you pay your college loans back? Published July 1, 2019
Medal of Freedom recipient Arthur Laffer showed the harm of excessive tax rates
Most people plod through life, having an impact on their family and friends, but not much on the rest of humanity. Rulers and despots can impact most everyone's life, as can those who are responsible for great scientific or engineering breakthroughs. Some musicians and athletes bring pleasure to millions. In other fields, such as economics, it is hard to identify individuals who created much in the way of pleasure or pain, or even directly useful knowledge for his or her fellow man. Published June 24, 2019
The biggest hoax of all time is that communism and socialism work
Mankind's penchant for hoaxes goes back at least as far as recorded history. Some hoaxes are harmless and funny, but others do great damage, including causing massive loss of life. Published June 17, 2019
Trump gamble on the southern border appears to pay off
Never underestimate fear of financial loss as a motivator. Last week in this column, I argued that the threat to place tariffs on Mexican goods was a bad idea because there are less risky and destructive ways to deal with the immigration problem on the U.S. southern border. As of this writing, it now appears that the president's bold gamble has paid off — despite the reservations of us timid economists. Published June 10, 2019
Tariffs, competitiveness and prosperity
For more than two centuries, economists and well-read people have understood that tariffs reduce the levels of competitiveness and prosperity. Adam Smith (1723-1790) explained how free trade (by increasing the extent of the market) enabled greater specialization and productivity, and David Ricardo (1772-1823) explained how free trade allowed for "comparative advantage" to everyone's benefit. Published June 3, 2019
Eventually the victims of a hoax catch on, no matter how it’s spun
People are easily taken in by scientific, literary, financial and political hoaxes, particularly when they want to believe. When we search for "truth," we tend to rely on authority and whether information supplied by the source has been accurate in the past. Serious newspapers, magazines, journals and electronic media sources historically took pride in getting the story right. Reputations could be destroyed and markets lost when a story was shown to be wrong because of a hoax or carelessness. Published May 27, 2019
Voters usually ‘hire’ office-holders for fixed terms
Sensible people make sure they understand the exit strategy when making an investment. Too often, people lock themselves into investments, like timeshares, vehicle loans, real estate purchases, etc. for far longer than they wish they had. The same is also true for personal service contracts, like exclusive arrangements with agents, movie studios, sports teams, etc. Published May 20, 2019
Despite proliferating doomsday scenarios, it’s yet to arrive
For most people, particularly in the United States, things have never been better. Yet, the newspapers and airwaves are filled with stories of impending disaster. Many of the doomsday scenarios have been around for some time but doomsday has yet to arrive. Published May 13, 2019
Europe slides into the poor house
Athens: Europe's most significant contribution to the world economy at the moment is serving as a bad example. Much of Western culture and law can trace its origin back to this city of 2,500 years ago. The ancient Athenians learned that democracy is fragile and can lead to bad outcomes — not that other governing systems have proved to be more successful over the long run. Published May 6, 2019
How money laundering, terrorist financing put the EU and U.S. at odds
All too rarely do government leaders fully think through the effects of their actions — extraterritorial application of law being a prime example. Published April 29, 2019
Socialism, fascism and communism enslave, and they do so with lethality
There are some plagues that mankind seems to be incapable of fully destroying. One of these plagues is slavery, which has existed since man moved from being a hunter-gatherer to agriculture. Slavery is the condition where an individual is deprived of much of the product he or she produces and often all or much of their property. The ancient Greeks held slaves. The Romans held slaves. The Chinese held slaves. The Ottoman Turks held slaves. Serfdom, a less restricted form of slavery, existed in Europe from the fall of Rome until it was finally abolished in Russia in 1861. The harsher forms of slavery existed in Europe and most of the rest of the world until the 19th century — when it was peacefully abolished in many countries, such as England, or through violent clashes, such as the U.S. Civil War. Published April 22, 2019
It may be too late for the Federal Reserve Bank, the European Central Bank and others
Everyone has heard of the Federal Reserve Bank or "The Fed" and that it has something to do with the value of our money — and so it must be very important. But few even claim to really understand what the Fed does and how it does it. Published April 15, 2019
What is not known about the economy
How much will the stock market rise this year? As an economist, I frequently get variations of that question. If I am honest and say "I have no idea," the questioner most often walks away with a disappointed look. If I say something like "10.4 percent," the questioner will often be satisfied, even though I have given a random number with no basis in fact. Published April 8, 2019
Eastern Europe shows what can happen when free markets, democracy are restored
Three decades ago, the socialist/communist economies of Eastern Europe died, not with a bang as many had feared, but with a whimper. It was obvious that the economies of those countries were falling further and further behind their Western Europe counterparts -- and that, coupled with the loss of liberty under the heavy thumb of the Soviet Union, was causing increased anger on the part of much of the population. Published April 1, 2019
What happened
Do you find it odd that almost up to the point that the Mueller report was released, John Brennan, former head of the CIA, said there would be other indictments? Published March 28, 2019
Why more power and spending should reside at the state and local level
It appears that a number of the new presidential candidates are not aware of the fact that the United States of America is a constitutional federal republic, and not a parliamentary democracy. Recent calls by some to abolish the Electoral College and drop the voting age to 16 are a sign that they lack an understanding of American history. Published March 25, 2019
The Trump administration needs a new economic game plan or growth will diminish
Will the economy grow in the next two years? President Trump had a plan to grow the economy when he took office — cut tax rates and get rid of many counterproductive regulations. It worked. The economy grew at a 3 percent rate last year, and employment grew to the point where there were more jobs available than workers to fill them. Published March 18, 2019
Over-taxation hurts normal commerce, taxpayers, privacy
Laws need to be few enough in number and readily understood by those they apply to in order to have an effective rule of law. The rule of law is necessary both for civil society and economic prosperity, but, unfortunately, it is being destroyed by governments that engage in endless efforts to increasingly micromanage the citizens. Published March 11, 2019
Connecting the dots of corruption
You may have noticed that there have been a number of people in the top ranks of the FBI and Justice Department — like Robert Mueller, James Comey and Andrew McCabe — who have had powerful jobs regardless of whether the administration is Democratic (Clinton/Obama) or Republican (Bushes). They are put there, in part, to protect the financial interests of the Washington establishment. The U.S. government dispenses tens of billions of dollars to foreign governments and entities each year, and Washington interests receive billions from foreign countries. Published March 4, 2019
