Links for 2011-04-24 [del.icio.us]

• CARPE DIEM: Tax Rates and Share of Tax Revenues from Top 1%
  A political conservative is more likely to make this point than to simply focus on the lack of money earned by the poor.  A political liberal is more likely to assume that the rate of strict religiosity can rise only so high, and take that as a background constraint.  Furthermore, under the exogenous thought experiment of many more poor people converting to Mormonism, positive selection bias diminishes and perhaps the religion as a whole becomes less strict.
• Religious conversion as an anti-poverty strategy — Marginal Revolution
  A political conservative is more likely to make this point than to simply focus on the lack of money earned by the poor.  A political liberal is more likely to assume that the rate of strict religiosity can rise only so high, and take that as a background constraint.  Furthermore, under the exogenous thought experiment of many more poor people converting to Mormonism, positive selection bias diminishes and perhaps the religion as a whole becomes less strict.
• Our Low, Low Taxes – NYTimes.com
  A political conservative is more likely to make this point than to simply focus on the lack of money earned by the poor.  A political liberal is more likely to assume that the rate of strict religiosity can rise only so high, and take that as a background constraint.  Furthermore, under the exogenous thought experiment of many more poor people converting to Mormonism, positive selection bias diminishes and perhaps the religion as a whole becomes less strict.
• Scott Sumner, from the comments — Marginal Revolution
  A political conservative is more likely to make this point than to simply focus on the lack of money earned by the poor.  A political liberal is more likely to assume that the rate of strict religiosity can rise only so high, and take that as a background constraint.  Furthermore, under the exogenous thought experiment of many more poor people converting to Mormonism, positive selection bias diminishes and perhaps the religion as a whole becomes less strict.
• NLRB: You Can’t Move Away From Your Union – Megan McArdle – Business – The Atlantic
  This seems crazy.  Boeing does not seem to have claimed that it was trying to break the union; it said it was moving to seek a more amenable labor force.  As far as I know, that’s not against the law, even if unions wish it were.  Companies have been moving south for decades to get a better tax and labor environment.  For the NLRB to declare that companies have no right to move would be tantamount to declaring that they are legally captive to whatever the local unions and governments care to dole out.  And to do so based on a chance remark at a conference call seems particularly insane.
• Large Tax Increases Are Not a Semantic Question – Megan McArdle – Business – The Atlantic
  In other words, for the poorest 20% of Americans (who make less than $20,000 a year, with an average income of $11,500), taxes go from about $460 to about $920.  For the middle quintile (making an average of $50,000 a year), taxes go from around $7,000 to over $12,000.  For those in the top quintile, with an average income of $167,000, taxes jump from a $41,000 to $62,000.  
• Clousseau vs. Cato (Institute) « Jay P. Greene’s Blog
  Vouchers vs tax credits vs other means.
• International Capital Gains Tax Rate Comparison: Where Does The US Stand? | TopForeignStocks.com
  Capital Gains taxes around the world.
• “The People’s Budget” — Marginal Revolution
  There have been some good criticisms of the funny assumptions behind the Ryan plan, but actually this budget isn’t better, either in terms of its final conclusions, its adherence to best scientific practices, or its transparency in getting to its results.  Should we not apply equally high standards to both the Ryan budget and this?  There are plenty of good arguments that taxes have to go up, but this particular proposal isn’t one of them.
• TheMoneyIllusion » Still not blogging (Comments on Brink Lindsey)
  So Denmark isn’t just the most free market economy, and the most egalitarian, and the most civic-minded, and the happiest.  It’s also the most entrepreneurial.  And is has the world’s best restaurant.  Thank God the weather will always be awful.  Oh wait  . . .  global warming is coming.
• Pacifism Defended, Bryan Caplan | EconLog | Library of Economics and Liberty
  I agree with you.  I’m not objecting to responsible risk-taking.  I drive.  My claim, rather, is that modern warfare is almost always irresponsible.  What militaries do isn’t like taking a shot with a 1% chance of accidentally hitting a bystander.  It’s more like throwing a grenade at a crowd because the gunman’s somewhere in the middle.
• European and US Employment – NYTimes.com
  Lots of people have an image of Europe as an economic pit of doom, with millions of prime-age workers sitting idle thanks to the welfare state. And there was some truth to that image 15 years ago. But things got better over there even as they got worse here: Even before the Great Recession struck, people in the prime of life were equally likely to be employed on either side of the Atlantic, and at this point Europe has a better prime-age employment situation than we do.
• Yahoo! Finance – Financially Fit
  5) For what you didn’t learn, ask. In school, wise teachers told us, “There are no stupid questions.” What they should’ve added is that not asking questions could also cost us money. For all of the financial actions you plan to take, do your research. With so much information at our fingertips, personal finance websites and tools like Credit Karma, LearnVest, Bundle and The Motley Fool can help you understand and manage money. There is no longer any excuse not to invest your money or to let your husband do your taxes.

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