Georgism is frequently critiqued through the lens of “not letting the perfect be the enemy of the good,” and the saying is often deployed as a polite political put-down by its detractors.

The relationship between Georgism—an economic philosophy focused on Public Capture of Economic Rents to replace all other taxes—and this aphorism cuts both ways, depending on whether you’re looking at it from the perspective of critics or modern advocates.

1. The Saying as a Critique (The “Put-Down”)

When critics use this phrase against Georgists, it is usually a way to dismiss the ideology as utopian, politically impossible, or dogmatic. In this context, it functions as a put-down, by implying that Georgists are too pure to operate in the real world.

Critics argue that:

• The “Single Tax” Dogma is Too Rigid: Henry George originally proposed the capture of rent as a single tax that would replace income, sales, and corporate taxes. Despite the Georgist claim that all taxes and their excess burden come out of rent, critics employ the argument that modern government spending is simply too large to cover from natural resource rents. Therefore, to want the single-tax is seen as letting a “perfect” ideal ruin practical revenue generation.
• Transition Costs are Ignored: Completely dismantling current property, income, and sales tax systems to implement a Georgist system is likely to cause massive economic disruption. Critics argue that waiting for this “perfect” systemic overhaul prevents us from effecting the switch of emphasis between income and sales taxes as proper tax reform.

2. The Georgist Counter-Argument

Modern Georgists strongly reject the idea that they’re letting the perfect oppose the good. They argue that Georgism is adaptable and pragmatic.

• An Incremental Approach: Rather than demanding overnight revolution, many Georgists advocate working for its gradual implementation, pointing to Singapore as a successful example of the public capture of rent over a period of time, despite not being fully Georgist in its approach.
• Economic Rent as a Significant Supplement: Many modern Georgists are content with capture of natural resource rents being a major source of revenue alongside other taxes, rather than the only source of revenue. They view a shift towards taxing ‘land’ rent rather than labor as a “good” step forward.