Re: Historical comparisons

<royls@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:440cfb04.4268010@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
On 4 Mar 2006 12:29:03 -0800, "William Mook"
<william.mook@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Correlation may derive from some causal relation, but you haven't shown
that causal relation yet.

The causal relation is well known: if you can't pocket land rent for
doing nothing, you are more likely to seek a more productive form of
investment. That is why the US states with the highest property tax
rates -- like NH, NJ, WI and OR -- tend to have not only better
economies than the states with the lowest property tax rates -- like
AL, AR, CA and MA -- but _lower_total_housing_costs_.


erm, been to Oregon lately? High six-figure quarter-acre lots pretty much
everywhere between the coast and Mt. Hood. And the economy in Portland is so
bad (Portland is by far the largest and most prosperous city in the state)
that they had to drop out of the bidding for a major-league baseball team.
Heavy unemployment. Depressed productivity. Seattle Lite it ain't anymore.

Absolutely beautiful area, though. When it's not raining.

And the reason why Alabama and Arkansas (among many other states in the
South) have shitty economies has a lot more to do with the continuing
aftereffects of Sherman's March than it does with their current property tax
rates.

--
Terrell Miller
millerto@xxxxxxxxxxxxx

"If Pop is a basket of kittens, and Punk a snarky little terrier, modern
Prog is the giant squid beast that eats them all"
-Entertainment Weekly


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