At a 1972 economics conference, at the height of the Vietnam war, Mason Gaffney presented an invited paper blandly entitled “The Benefits of Military Spending.” The paper so shocked the conference organizer that he refused to include it in the conference volume. Gaffney couldn’t find another publisher willing to touch

City economics, Development economics, Inequality, Mason Gaffney, Military spending

March 17, 2014

Whose Water? Ours! How to End California’s Water Crisis

The California Constitution says the water belongs to the people. Yet the state gives water almost free to agriculture--resulting in enormous waste and dire "shortages" during droughts. If the state were to charge for water, that would end the water crisis--and solve California's fiscal crisis too.

California, drought, water policy, water pricing

August 9, 2013

How a Progressive Tax System Made Detroit a Powerhouse (and Could Again)

In 1995, we encountered a group of economic advisors to Governor John Engler of Michigan, intent on cutting property taxes. We reminded them of California’s 1979 Proposition 13. After Prop. 13 rolled back and froze property taxes, sales taxes reached crushing levels, budget crises became routine, local services collapsed, and