Where the State Thieves the Least

Why Asia is more Libertarian on taxes than USA, Western Europe, and Australia

For your own good of course

Having spent two decades growing up in Europe, coupled with extensive travels throughout USA, before relocating to Australia and Asia for  the next 13 years, whilst never once having wavered in my animosity towards state control, leeching bureaucracies, ludicrous regulations and exorbitant tax rates, I feel somewhat qualified to make that argument.

To help explain why, I've compared income tax rates between the regions very generally, as it represents the biggest expense for most people to their government. Second, I also account for total government tax revenues as a percentage of GDP, as it is a great indicator of the overall scope and size of government. 

Income tax rates compared

With progressive income tax rates that quickly race up to the range of 35-50 percent, Europe falls short on this criterion straight off the blocks.

A History of Big Government in Europe & USA

How the State convinced you to hand over more than half your wealth.

Bismarck: The first domino?

Ever since German Iron Chancellor Otto von Bismarck enacted the first pension laws to placate the socialist threat from within Germany in the 1880s, which set Europe on the destructive path towards an ever-growing welfare state, the American and European systems of government had one distinct disparity.

The hallmark of the former was limited, the latter increasingly large. It was small State versus big. Individualism versus welfarism. Classical Liberalism (Libertarianism) versus Statism.

Today, such differences are more subtle, and swiftly becoming a thing of the past. Governments on both sides of the Atlantic can rightly be described as Big with a capital B, and appears to be growing perpetually.

So how exactly did the citizens of USA and Europe become cajoled into thinking big government is in their best interest?

Is Islam compatible with Libertarian ideas?

When all roads lead to Rome

Libertarians are sometimes accused of being heartless social-Darwinists.  From a religious communitarian perspective, there may very well be some truth to that. With their rigid focus on individualism, they appear diametrically opposed, at least ideologically, to some aspects of religious teachings in general, and those of Islam in particular. How so?

The Islamic pecking order
First, Islam as an ideology has much in common with Communism. The community is in focus and the individual comes after religion, family, clan and country. The order may vary, but the individual always comes last.

Democracy: The Tyranny of the Majority Revisited

How Democracies restrict your individual freedom.

The endgame for Democratic decadence?

Western Democracies take great pride in extending universal suffrage to all their citizens. The right to elect one’s leaders is even considered the quintessential hallmark of freedom. Millions of people around the world have throughout history been willing to risk life and limb to fight for this right.

So, why would anyone with his head screwed on straight question this concept of divine virtue? Because, as is argued below, the pillar of Democracy, namely majority decision-making is highly incompatible with individual freedom. The former must essentially come at the expense of the latter.

Government in Europe: the New Opiate of the Masses

How welfare states and Keynesian policies destroyed Europe's economic growth

Keynesian placebo policies 

“The answer is more Europe, not less,” proclaimed German Chancellor Angela Merkel two months ago shortly after committing to yet another stimulus plan with Italy, Spain and France to promote economic growth in Europe.

Europeans have become accustomed to frequent proclamations and promises of this kind since the world’s financial crisis morphed into a sovereign debt crisis exposing the socialist European economies for the houses of cards they always were.

Amidst this sea of promises and empty upbeat political rhetoric, economic growth has yet to appear. Instead, countries all over the continent keep mortgaging their citizen’s futures whilst assiduously extending the freedom restricting tentacles of state control into new realms of economic activity.