The Man speaketh:

You can always count on politicians in Washington to be generous with your hard earned tax dollars. The most recent example of this comes as the President and Congress are preparing to pass an economic stimulus package in response to signs of a slowing economy. This comes despite the fact that many indicators still point to continued economic growth, albeit at a slower rate.

Amid the buzz of various proposals one plan is becoming increasingly likely. The President and congressional leaders have proposed writing taxpayer funded government checks for between $300 and $1,200 per person. These rebates will be one-time handouts designed to spur consumer spending.

But an economy that is facing slumping home sales, a credit crisis and nose-diving markets will not be rescued by temporary cash handouts. History has taught us this lesson repeatedly.

Washington sent Americans $300 tax rebate checks in 2001, but the handouts did little for real economic growth and Congress went back to the drawing board. Instead of making the same mistake again, President Bush and Republicans pushed for pro-growth tax cuts in 2003.

You should read the rest of the article.  Sen. Jim DeMint proves, once again, why he is one of the best Senators in Washington.  He has done a great deal in his quest to serve as a taxpayers’ watchdog.

Daniel Glover unveiled a new blog called “Taxation With Representation,” devoted entirely to one of the certainties of life: taxes. (the other being death of course)

H/T to Club for Growth

I linked to my class blog where I posted this originally, but it can’t be accessed without the username and password. So with the professor’s permission, I’m cross-posting it here.

As covered in an earlier post [note: this is referencing a post by another student], South Korea’s President-elect, Lee Myung-bak, is poised to take several measures in his move to push for expansion and growth in South Korea’s economy. He is going about this by encouraging domestic companies to invest more stateside, pushing for tax cuts and streamlining the government, and privatizing banks and other businesses while also seeking a public works project in the form of a canal system throughout his country.

Luckily for President-elect Myung-bak, the economic conditions in South Korea are ripe for expansion. The Bank of Korea reports that the South Korean economy expanded in the 4th quarter of last year, notably in exports and manufacturing. Economists point to this to suggest that South Korea could maintain its economy and be more than able to fare a global slowdown should the United States enter a recession, which is looking more likely by the day.

Along with this optimistic news on economic growth, South Korean stocks have gained in recent sessions which points to strength in the investment sector of the economy. This success in South Korea is also being shared by its neighbors in Asia, meaning in my opinion that geographically close trading partners are also in a good position, thus will be able to take South Korea’s exports even in a global slowdown.

These positive indicators of the South Korean economy, along with the economic plans of the incoming President, bode well for the economic future of South Korea. I feel that these strengths, along with the perennial strength of Korean microprocessors and other specialized goods, make the country well-prepared to thrive and experience economic growth even in the face of a worldwide crunch. I believe that with Mr. Myung-buk’s pro-growth proposals such as tax cuts and privatization combined with the current strength of the economy, at the very least the country will be able to weather an economic storm with better resilience than other countries with less economic success.