The American social philosopher Henry George demonstrated the answer is not to be found in controlling credit but in using economic rents, instead of taxes on workers and businesses, for necessary government revenues. He detailed why economic rents, generated by the community are owed back to the community – and that taxes do, indeed, destroy.

Tomas Piketty doesn’t appear to have read Henry George, because he would have understood that allowing the 1% to capture most of our economic rents must inevitably lead to pauperising the greater part of the 99%.

But how can a 135 year-old book speak to modern society, do I hear you say?

See for yourself: it’s a great read.

If you’d like something shorter, try George’s “Social Problems” which is a series of stand-alone essays.

…. lots of things don’t get sold.

People start to realise they’re carrying too much debt and, instead of spending, they begin to save and pay down debt.

Demand for goods softens and stocks begin to grow.

Cars for example …….

How many petitions have you signed recently about one or more facets of the worsening state of affairs in Australia?

Here’s one I signed this morning. I signed it because I believe it’s a step in the right direction – even if it doesn’t get to grips with the most fundamental structural flaw in Australian society.

Do you realise virtually all the petitions come back to some aspect of inadequate public funding for our health, education, infrastructure, housing and social welfare, when we live in an economy of abundance? I agree it may not look like an economy of abundance right at the moment, but don’t you see we are still creating billionaires at the same time as an increasing number of Australians are unable to pay their bills?  (Now there’s an irony for which I have the answer!)

The money is most certainly there for necessary government all right, providing we get it from the right source – the economic rent generated by the mere existence of Australians. And I say necessary government because we are, indeed, increasingly becoming a nanny state with excessive bureaucracy in a vain attempt to rectify all the social problems that stem from taxing all the wrong things: people for working; businesses for making a profit.

Canadian, Stefan Molyneux who has documented Australia’s fall from grace in this video blames government, and although right in part, does he really believe all will be fine if we simply slash government programs and the RBA raises interest rates to stop the property bubble? What about the rent-seeking 1%, Mr Molyneux? Yes, I know that many other Australian wannabes are trying their luck at rent-seeking, too–in an effort just to keep up–but their luck’s about to run out.

We’ve got to put an end to private rent-seeking in community-created income. It won’t be easy, because the 1% clearly understand that this is certainly an economic depression and want to hold onto all the tax privileges they’ve been granted. The rest of us can go to hell.

And this project aint about class warfare at all. It’s about explaining how the 1% get wealthy at our expense by capturing the economic rents we generate as a community. As they’re owed equally to ALL of us, they remain the perfect revenue base.

Give credit where credit is due:  David Collyer says the Greens are leading the majors on tax reform.

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The scourge of “minimum rates” is practised to some extent around much of Australia, but David Collyer today delivers a first-hand account of its application in Queensland, where it achieves its apotheosis –> http://www.macrobusiness.com.au/2014/05/qlds-local-government-gouge-exposed/

Prepare for Chinese property bust.

…. http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/property-council-vehemently-opposed-to-a-special-rates-zone-or-levy-to-fund-light-rail-20140520-zriiw.html

Here’s a very interesting “Late Night Live” talk with Reza Aslan on Radio National which firmly locates Jesus of Nazareth within his political surroundings. My highlight was Aslan’s correction:  Render Give back to Caesar the denarius that is Caesar’s, and render give back to God and the Jews the land that is the Jews’.