Abstract Today’s views and analyses about taxation are dominated by the social-welfare approach based on various categories of utilitarianism, most notably those developed by the optimal-tax literature. By contrast, this paper focuses on the ethical foundations of taxation and analyses a tradition that harks back to the 17th century. In particular, we emphasise the notion of legitimate taxation in the history of economic thought from the libertarian, the classical-liberal and socialist perspectives. By means of this very notion, we define the essence of a desirable tax structure and draw conclusions in regard to today’s tax policies.
{"title":"Legitimate Tax Structures: Lessons from the Past","authors":"Enrico Colombatto","doi":"10.1515/jeeh-2022-0008","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1515/jeeh-2022-0008","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Today’s views and analyses about taxation are dominated by the social-welfare approach based on various categories of utilitarianism, most notably those developed by the optimal-tax literature. By contrast, this paper focuses on the ethical foundations of taxation and analyses a tradition that harks back to the 17th century. In particular, we emphasise the notion of legitimate taxation in the history of economic thought from the libertarian, the classical-liberal and socialist perspectives. By means of this very notion, we define the essence of a desirable tax structure and draw conclusions in regard to today’s tax policies.","PeriodicalId":53483,"journal":{"name":"Journal des Economistes et des Etudes Humaines","volume":"66 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135479741","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Social Rules in Libertarian Thought","authors":"Chad Van Schoelandt","doi":"10.1515/JEEH-2020-0006","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1515/JEEH-2020-0006","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":53483,"journal":{"name":"Journal des Economistes et des Etudes Humaines","volume":"14 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-08-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80897732","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
This article argues that, notwithstanding views to the contrary, Frederic Bastiat (Bayonne, 1801; Rome, 1850) was indeed a man of science. Thus, in several of his essays he showed that political economy can attain a level of scientific rigor comparable in many respects to that of the natural sciences. Subscribing to the principle of methodological individualism, he offered some persuasive explanations for why people believe in a multitude of things. After examining science as Bastiat conceived it, we shall look at two important examples, mechanization and rational voting.
{"title":"Bastiat as a Social Scientist","authors":"L. Robert","doi":"10.1515/JEEH-2019-0009","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1515/JEEH-2019-0009","url":null,"abstract":"This article argues that, notwithstanding views to the contrary, Frederic Bastiat (Bayonne, 1801; Rome, 1850) was indeed a man of science. Thus, in several of his essays he showed that political economy can attain a level of scientific rigor comparable in many respects to that of the natural sciences. Subscribing to the principle of methodological individualism, he offered some persuasive explanations for why people believe in a multitude of things. After examining science as Bastiat conceived it, we shall look at two important examples, mechanization and rational voting.","PeriodicalId":53483,"journal":{"name":"Journal des Economistes et des Etudes Humaines","volume":"1 1","pages":"1-8"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-01-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75376841","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
In the third century AD, under the pressure of plagues, external invasion, rising army costs, and usurpation, the Roman emperors incrementally debased the silver coinage that was produced at their imperial mints and incrementally took over civic mints. The debasement, from 2.7 g of silver to 0.04 g of silver in the equivalent of a denarius from 160–274 ad, was accompanied by worries from emperors, mint-workers, and bankers about the value of the currency; however, the total loss of purchasing power of the Roman coinage from the same era was 50–70 %, far less than would be expected from the change in metallic content, if it were the primary source of value. The currency reform of Aurelian in 274 ad, despite raising metallic values of coins, was followed by at least a 90 % reduction in the purchasing power of the silver coinage from 274–301 ad, the year of Diocletian’s Edict on Maximum Prices, showing a paradoxically inverse relationship between metallic value and purchasing power.
{"title":"Imperial Monetary Policy and Social Reaction in Third Century Rome","authors":"Kallmes Kevin","doi":"10.1515/JEEH-2017-0002","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1515/JEEH-2017-0002","url":null,"abstract":"In the third century AD, under the pressure of plagues, external invasion, rising army costs, and usurpation, the Roman emperors incrementally debased the silver coinage that was produced at their imperial mints and incrementally took over civic mints. The debasement, from 2.7 g of silver to 0.04 g of silver in the equivalent of a denarius from 160–274 ad, was accompanied by worries from emperors, mint-workers, and bankers about the value of the currency; however, the total loss of purchasing power of the Roman coinage from the same era was 50–70 %, far less than would be expected from the change in metallic content, if it were the primary source of value. The currency reform of Aurelian in 274 ad, despite raising metallic values of coins, was followed by at least a 90 % reduction in the purchasing power of the silver coinage from 274–301 ad, the year of Diocletian’s Edict on Maximum Prices, showing a paradoxically inverse relationship between metallic value and purchasing power.","PeriodicalId":53483,"journal":{"name":"Journal des Economistes et des Etudes Humaines","volume":"52 1","pages":"1-11"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-11-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80758926","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Switzerland provides a potential laboratory for testing various hypotheses connected with tax competition because of its extremely decentralized fiscal system. Twenty-six cantons (some of them extremely small) have retained the ultimate power of deciding tax questions, and hence not only to limit the Federal level of the State to about 1/3 of total public expenditure, but also to retain absolute power to set their own levels of taxation. Furthermore, citizens can launch referenda on tax issues at any level of government.Fiscal competition between cantons should therefore be easy to spot, resulting in lower tax cantons enjoying higher economic growth (the classical hypothesis), or in a race to the bottom with lower tax cantons offering a lower level of public services (the harmful competition hypothesis). In fact, neither of these hypotheses is confirmed. This leads the author to suggest a third hypothesis based on public choice theory (politicians in high-income cantons are led to raise high taxes). The author suggests that the classical and the public choice hypotheses cancel each other out, leaving a mixed picture. The article ends with some reflexions on the implications of the Swiss experience for fiscal harmonization at a European level.La Suisse offre un veritable laboratoire pour tester plusieurs hypotheses de concurrence fiscale en raison de son systeme fiscal extremement decentralise. Vingt six cantons (dont quelques uns tres petits) ont conserve le pouvoir supreme de decider les questions fiscales et, donc, non seulement de limiter le niveau federal de lEtat a 1/3 des depenses publiques totales, mais aussi de conserver le pouvoir absolu pour fixer leurs propres niveaux de taxation. De plus, les habitants peuvent lancer des referendums en matiere fiscale a tout niveau du gouvernement.La concurrence fiscale entre les cantons devrait etre par consequent plus facile a reperer, les cantons les moins imposes ayant une croissance economique superieure (hypothese classique), ou en un « nivellement par le bas » face aux cantons les moins imposes offrant un niveau inferieur de services publics (hypothese de concurrence nefaste). En fait, aucune de ces hypotheses nest confirmee. Cela conduit lauteur a suggerer une troisieme hypothese basee sur la theorie des decisions publiques (les politiciens des cantons a revenus eleves sont conduits a lever des impots eleves). Lauteur suggere que les hypotheses classiques et celles des decisions publiques se neutralisent lune lautre, laissant place a un modele mixte. Larticle se termine par quelques reflexions quant aux implications de lexperience Suisse pour une harmonisation fiscale au niveau europeen.
由于其极度分散的财政体系,瑞士为测试与税收竞争有关的各种假设提供了一个潜在的实验室。26个州(其中一些非常小)保留了决定税收问题的最终权力,因此不仅将州的联邦水平限制在公共支出总额的三分之一左右,而且还保留了确定自己税收水平的绝对权力。此外,公民可以在任何一级政府就税收问题举行全民公决。因此,各州之间的财政竞争应该很容易发现,结果是低税收州享受更高的经济增长(经典假说),或者是低税收州提供更低水平的公共服务(有害竞争假说)。事实上,这两种假设都没有得到证实。这导致作者提出了基于公共选择理论的第三种假设(高收入州的政治家被引导提高高税收)。作者认为,古典选择假说和公共选择假说相互抵消,留下了一个复杂的画面。文章最后对瑞士经验对欧洲层面财政协调的影响进行了一些反思。瑞士银行提供了一个不可靠的实验室,提供了一个测试器,提供了关于并行的假设,财政和财政系统的理由,财政极端分散。如果六个州(不像quelques一样不像tres petits)不保留最高的权力,就像在财政问题上不保留最高的权力,不保留联邦的权力,不保留公共的权力,不保留绝对的权力,不保留固定的权力,不保留税收的权力。此外,更少的居民反对就财政问题和新政府问题举行全民公决。“并行财政中心”(conconconce fiscal centre)使各州的经济状况恶化,“并行财政中心”(conconconce)使各州的经济状况恶化,“并行财政中心”(conconconce)使各州的经济状况恶化,“并行财政中心”(conconconce)使公共服务状况恶化。事实上,许多假设都没有得到证实。Cela conduit lauteur提出了一种三重假设,即基于公共决策的理论基础(政治决策的理论基础,财政决策的理论基础,财政决策的杠杆基础,财政决策的杠杆基础,财政决策的杠杆基础)。Lauteur建议用que les hypothesis classiques et cells des decisions publicliques使用neutralent lunne lautre, laissant放置unmodel mixture。文章称:“瑞士为欧洲统一财政政策提供了一种特殊的、定量的、经验上的启示。”
{"title":"Fiscal Decentralisation: The Swiss Case","authors":"Price Victoria Curzon","doi":"10.2202/1145-6396.1108","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2202/1145-6396.1108","url":null,"abstract":"Switzerland provides a potential laboratory for testing various hypotheses connected with tax competition because of its extremely decentralized fiscal system. Twenty-six cantons (some of them extremely small) have retained the ultimate power of deciding tax questions, and hence not only to limit the Federal level of the State to about 1/3 of total public expenditure, but also to retain absolute power to set their own levels of taxation. Furthermore, citizens can launch referenda on tax issues at any level of government.Fiscal competition between cantons should therefore be easy to spot, resulting in lower tax cantons enjoying higher economic growth (the classical hypothesis), or in a race to the bottom with lower tax cantons offering a lower level of public services (the harmful competition hypothesis). In fact, neither of these hypotheses is confirmed. This leads the author to suggest a third hypothesis based on public choice theory (politicians in high-income cantons are led to raise high taxes). The author suggests that the classical and the public choice hypotheses cancel each other out, leaving a mixed picture. The article ends with some reflexions on the implications of the Swiss experience for fiscal harmonization at a European level.La Suisse offre un veritable laboratoire pour tester plusieurs hypotheses de concurrence fiscale en raison de son systeme fiscal extremement decentralise. Vingt six cantons (dont quelques uns tres petits) ont conserve le pouvoir supreme de decider les questions fiscales et, donc, non seulement de limiter le niveau federal de lEtat a 1/3 des depenses publiques totales, mais aussi de conserver le pouvoir absolu pour fixer leurs propres niveaux de taxation. De plus, les habitants peuvent lancer des referendums en matiere fiscale a tout niveau du gouvernement.La concurrence fiscale entre les cantons devrait etre par consequent plus facile a reperer, les cantons les moins imposes ayant une croissance economique superieure (hypothese classique), ou en un « nivellement par le bas » face aux cantons les moins imposes offrant un niveau inferieur de services publics (hypothese de concurrence nefaste). En fait, aucune de ces hypotheses nest confirmee. Cela conduit lauteur a suggerer une troisieme hypothese basee sur la theorie des decisions publiques (les politiciens des cantons a revenus eleves sont conduits a lever des impots eleves). Lauteur suggere que les hypotheses classiques et celles des decisions publiques se neutralisent lune lautre, laissant place a un modele mixte. Larticle se termine par quelques reflexions quant aux implications de lexperience Suisse pour une harmonisation fiscale au niveau europeen.","PeriodicalId":53483,"journal":{"name":"Journal des Economistes et des Etudes Humaines","volume":"20 1","pages":"1-20"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2003-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"87713401","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The idea of entrepreneurial discovery of profitable opportunities neglected by others as the driving force of the market process is the key contribution of Kirzner to economics. However, to enrich our understanding of the process of entrepreneurial discovery and to derive testable implications we need something more concrete than Kirzners alertness. The paper builds on Kirzners distinction between the logic of choice and perception (or understanding), by arguing that the essence of decision making is coming to an understanding, and learning how to act. A set of behavioral implications (such as experimentation, habits, imitation, empathy, etc..) follows as patterns of learning in different contexts. Further, conventions emerge as a means of stabilizing mutual expectations. Stability of conventions on the one hand and learning over time on the other creates possibility of entrepreneurial discovery and endogenous process of change.Lidee de decouverte entrepreneuriale des opportunites profitables ignorees par les autres en tant que force motrice du processus marchand represente la contribution fondamentale de Kirzner a la science economique. Cependant, nous devons disposer de quelque chose de plus concret que la vigilance kirznerienne si nous voulons approfondir notre comprehension du processus de decouverte entrepreneuriale et en deduire des implications testables. Larticle se fonde sur la distinction quopere Kirzner entre la logique des choix et la perception (ou la comprehension) et propose que lessence de la prise de decision consiste a parvenir a une comprehension et a apprendre comment agir. Un ensemble dimplications au niveau des comportements (telles que lexperimentation, les habitudes, limitation, lempathie) en decoule comme scheme d apprentissage dans des contextes differents. De plus, les conventions emergent en tant que moyens de stabilisation des anticipations mutuelles. La stabilite des conventions, dun cote, et lapprentissage dans le temps, de lautre, creent la possibilite de decouverte entrepreneuriale et de processus de changement endogenes.
{"title":"On Neglected Opportunities And Entrepreneurial Discovery","authors":"Choi Young Back","doi":"10.2202/1145-6396.1046","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2202/1145-6396.1046","url":null,"abstract":"The idea of entrepreneurial discovery of profitable opportunities neglected by others as the driving force of the market process is the key contribution of Kirzner to economics. However, to enrich our understanding of the process of entrepreneurial discovery and to derive testable implications we need something more concrete than Kirzners alertness. The paper builds on Kirzners distinction between the logic of choice and perception (or understanding), by arguing that the essence of decision making is coming to an understanding, and learning how to act. A set of behavioral implications (such as experimentation, habits, imitation, empathy, etc..) follows as patterns of learning in different contexts. Further, conventions emerge as a means of stabilizing mutual expectations. Stability of conventions on the one hand and learning over time on the other creates possibility of entrepreneurial discovery and endogenous process of change.Lidee de decouverte entrepreneuriale des opportunites profitables ignorees par les autres en tant que force motrice du processus marchand represente la contribution fondamentale de Kirzner a la science economique. Cependant, nous devons disposer de quelque chose de plus concret que la vigilance kirznerienne si nous voulons approfondir notre comprehension du processus de decouverte entrepreneuriale et en deduire des implications testables. Larticle se fonde sur la distinction quopere Kirzner entre la logique des choix et la perception (ou la comprehension) et propose que lessence de la prise de decision consiste a parvenir a une comprehension et a apprendre comment agir. Un ensemble dimplications au niveau des comportements (telles que lexperimentation, les habitudes, limitation, lempathie) en decoule comme scheme d apprentissage dans des contextes differents. De plus, les conventions emergent en tant que moyens de stabilisation des anticipations mutuelles. La stabilite des conventions, dun cote, et lapprentissage dans le temps, de lautre, creent la possibilite de decouverte entrepreneuriale et de processus de changement endogenes.","PeriodicalId":53483,"journal":{"name":"Journal des Economistes et des Etudes Humaines","volume":"1 1","pages":"1-17"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2002-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"76247326","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A Summons To Denationalise Society Pascal Salin's Liberal Antistatism","authors":"N. Robert","doi":"10.2202/1145-6396.1144","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2202/1145-6396.1144","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":53483,"journal":{"name":"Journal des Economistes et des Etudes Humaines","volume":"7 1","pages":"1-7"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2000-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"84621592","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Histoire de la liberté à travers la Chrétienté","authors":"A. Lord","doi":"10.2202/1145-6396.1143","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2202/1145-6396.1143","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":53483,"journal":{"name":"Journal des Economistes et des Etudes Humaines","volume":"123 1","pages":"1-22"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2000-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"79469851","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Ordre naturel, raison et catallactique: l'approche de F. Bastiat","authors":"P. Solal, Abdallah Zouache","doi":"10.1515/JEEH-2000-0210","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1515/JEEH-2000-0210","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":53483,"journal":{"name":"Journal des Economistes et des Etudes Humaines","volume":"38 1","pages":"409-420"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2000-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"77666193","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Economic Principles and Monetary Institutions. Review Essay on The Theory of Monetary Institutions","authors":"Lawrence H. White","doi":"10.1515/JEEH-2000-0211","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1515/JEEH-2000-0211","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":53483,"journal":{"name":"Journal des Economistes et des Etudes Humaines","volume":"97 1","pages":"421-442"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2000-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"85758345","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}