Over the course of 2018 we've seen increasing clarity about the so-called "Opportunity Zones" included in the Republican smash-and-grab tax heist of 2017. Over at Alpha Architect they have an excellent breakdown of the tax advantages of these investment vehicles, so I'll stick to the roughest possible outline: taxable capital gains (e.g. from the sale of an appreciated … [Read more...] about “Opportunity Zones” are a terrible idea, poorly implemented, but big ambitious policies can and do work
rant
Why is it necessary to give the problem a name?
Last week I wrote a brief post explaining why guaranteed government old age pensions, like Social Security in the United States, the State Pension in the United Kingdom, or Old Age Security in Canada, are the only mechanism that has ever been invented for ensuring security and dignity in retirement, and need to be centered in any attempt to reduce elder poverty. This is not … [Read more...] about Why is it necessary to give the problem a name?
The risks of specialized knowledge
The other day, I received an invitation to an event at the Brookings Institution called "The new American dream: Retirement security." This seemed right up my alley, so I clicked through to see the event details. The description starts off with some generic language: "The American dream has drawn millions to the 'land of opportunity' and long encapsulated the idea that every … [Read more...] about The risks of specialized knowledge
So-called “personal finance education” is a distraction
About a year or so ago I noticed a cliche spreading among a certain set of prominent investors and money managers: that a key obstacle to success among young people today is a lack of personal finance erudition. Today's entry in the genre came from Ben Carlson at Ritholtz Wealth Management, who wrote: "I wish high schools and colleges would teach personal finance. They could … [Read more...] about So-called “personal finance education” is a distraction
The rhetorical confusion between the administrative and regulatory states
On the occasion of a new Federalist Society nominee to the Supreme Court, I thought it'd be worth explaining a set of issues that are going to repeatedly come before the Court in the coming decades, and explain a confusing set of terms that arises from those issues. The "Administrative" Procedure Act is about regulation, not administration The Administrative Procedure Act … [Read more...] about The rhetorical confusion between the administrative and regulatory states