Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
"Government is going to spend whatever the tax system will raise plus a little more—lately a good deal more."
Milton Friedman's statement is (as usual) distressingly evergreen. The U.S. government spends a shocking amount of money, and it taxes a lot of it from its people. But the bulk of that taxation is fairly invisible, taken from our paychecks before they ever reach our bank accounts.
How would things be different if that didn't happen, if Americans needed to actively pay taxes instead of them simply being lifted from our earnings automatically? Do you think the tolerance for taxes and spending would shrink?
"Government is going to spend whatever the tax system will raise plus a little more—lately a good deal more."
Milton Friedman's statement is (as usual) distressingly evergreen. The U.S. government spends a shocking amount of money, and it taxes a lot of it from its people. But the bulk of that taxation is fairly invisible, taken from our paychecks before they ever reach our bank accounts.
How would things be different if that didn't happen, if Americans needed to actively pay taxes instead of them simply being lifted from our earnings automatically? Do you think the tolerance for taxes and spending would shrink?
