June 7, 2013
It’s Friday!
Quotes of Note
“Good intentions will always be pleaded for every assumption of authority. It is hardly too strong to say that the Constitution was made to guard the people against the dangers of good intentions. There are men in all ages who mean to govern well, but they mean to govern. They promise to be good masters, but they mean to be masters.” – Daniel Webster
“The ‘private sector’ of the economy is, in fact, the voluntary sector; and … the ‘public sector’ is, in fact, the coercive sector.” – Henry Hazlitt
“Georgia Tech’s online degree, powered by Udacity, is such a game-changer. For the same $7,000 a year that New York City spends per student on school buses, you can now get a master’s from one of the most well-respected programs in the country. Moore’s Law says these fees should drop to $1,000 by 2020 – a boon for students and for the economy.” – Wall Street Journal
Government
Debt: Georgia has the 47th lowest total state debt per capita ($1,373) in the nation, according to the Tax Foundation. Tennessee has the lowest ranking with a debt of $925 per capita, and Massachusetts has the highest at $11,309.
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Privatization: The experiences of the thousands of other local governments around the country (and indeed, around the world) that have embraced privatization demonstrate that there is indeed another more entrepreneurial and pragmatic way to govern, according to Leonard Gilroy and Adrian Moore of the Reason Foundation. “When implemented with care, due diligence and a focus on maximizing competition, privatization is an approach that puts results, performance and outcomes first and can deliver high-quality public services at a lower cost.”
Economy
Thank a foreign firm: From 2007 to 2012, &YM_MID=1399123&sfvc4enews=42">foreign investment in U.S. manufacturing totaled $493 billion, compared with $270 billion the previous six years, according to the Organization for International Investment. Source: IndustryWeek
Look north for economic advice: Canada’s score on “economic freedom” in the Fraser Institute’s Economic Freedom of the World report is now higher than the score for the United States, Chris Edwards writes for the Cato Institute. Canada has balanced its budget every year since 1998 and has actually cut spending. Canada has reduced trade barriers, privatized businesses, slashed its corporate tax rate and the Canadian central bank has adopted a goal of price stability. The United States could try some of these ideas to get us out of our economic doldrums.
My pleasure to serve you: After neighbors objected and the city rejected the design of a drive-through window at a Chick-fil-A restaurant in Birmingham’s Five Points South neighborhood, the Atlanta-based fast food chain instituted “curb-side” service, according to a report by the Birmingham News. Source: Bizjournals.com
Events
July 11: Education expert Jay Greene is the keynote speaker at the Foundation’s annual Friedman Legacy for Freedom Day, which will be marked with a noon Policy Briefing Luncheon at the Athens Country Club. ($30.) Find out more at http://tinyurl.com/nz9at52; register at http://tinyurl.com/ojcs5fp.
Mark your calendar: The fourth annual Georgia Legislative Policy Forum takes place Friday, October 11, at the Renaissance Waverly Atlanta. Last year, hundreds of Georgia’s legislators, businesspeople and interested citizens attended to hear national policy experts discuss free-market solutions to Georgia’s challenges. Details to follow.
June 19: How will ObamaCare impact your business? Find out at the Georgia Chamber’s 2013 Federal Health Care Conference. Details and registration at http://tinyurl.com/k2vjobl. (Foundation members who are not Georgia Chamber members can contact Ashley Cody () to take advantage of the Chamber member rate for this event.)
Got students? The Foundation’s Student Outreach Scholarship (SOS) Program uses supporters’ tax-deductible contributions to cover the charge for qualified students to attend events, giving them an opportunity to hear national speakers on free-market ideas and to network with Georgia’s business, community and political leaders. Find out how to apply to attend events or to contribute to this Program at https://live-gppf.pantheonsite.io/?p=9167.
Social media
We’re heading toward 2,100 “likes” on the Foundation’s Facebook page! Join us at facebook.com/GeorgiaPolicyto get daily policy news, views, updates, Quotes of Note and photos. Nearly 1,000 Twitter followers get their Foundation news at twitter.com/gppf. Find out about student scholarships to attend Foundation events at facebook.com/GeorgiaPolicySOSProgram.
YouTube: The Foundation’s YouTube channel is a rapidly expanding resource for rich, fact-filled public policy discussions, both new and historical events, including Georgia Legislative Policy Forum sessions, Leadership Breakfasts and Policy Briefing Luncheons. Subscribe to the channel to make the best use of our resources: http://tinyurl.com/agkm5h5.
This Week in The Forum: In “Checking Up on Health,” Benita Dodd writes about Virtual Health Assistants, a potential cure for juvenile diabetes and how the federal government wants input on regulating health care information technology. Find this and other recent posts in The Forum, the Foundation’s blog, at georgiapolicy.org/category/the-forum/.
Visit www.georgiapolicy.org to read our latest commentary, “High-Speed Rail in Europe and Asia: Lessons for the United States,” by Baruch Feigenbaum.
Have a great weekend.
Kelly McCutchen and Benita Dodd
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