Monday, January 12, 2009

Thomas Jefferson - a "supply sider"

Thomas Jefferson argued that "a wise and frugal government, which shall leave men free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned - this is the sum of good government.
The Journal, December 2008, by Summit Ministries

The December issue of The Journal discusses a financial disaster in the 1830 similar to the one we've experienced recently. Easy credit led to land speculation. Prior to 1832, land sales on the frontier were running about $2.5 million per year. By 1836, annual land sales totaled $25 million.

In our recent debacle, it is estimated that 1/4 of all homes sales were speculative sales. Once housing prices stopped rising, and interest rates began to rise, foreclosures increased.

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