Good news! On economic freedom, America is in the global Top 10.
Bad news: America is No. 10 — one blond hair ahead of Denmark.
According to the 18th annual Index of Economic Freedom, released Thursday by the Heritage Foundation and the Wall Street Journal, Hong Kong enjoys Earth’s freest economy. The Chinese Special Administrative Region invariably has topped this list since it began in 1995. No. 2 Singapore leads Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, Canada, Chile, Mauritius, and Ireland. Agnostic on political freedom, the Index evaluates fiscal discipline, taxes, regulations, monetary policy, rule of law, corruption, and other measures of economic liberty.
Advertisement
Because the United States keeps slipping in those areas, America has slid from No. 9 in 2011 to tenth place today. Indeed, this is the fourth consecutive year in which the U.S. fell a notch. Out of a perfect score of 100, America declined 1.5 points to 76.3. Denmark, No. 11, scored 76.2.
“As recently as 2008, the United States was ranked 7th, rated 81, and considered a ‘free’ economy,” Heritage notes. “Today, it is ‘mostly free’ — the runner-up category.”
The Index’s authors — Amb. Terry Miller, Kim Holmes, and Ed Feulner, all at Heritage — lament that in America, “recent government interventions have eroded limits on government, and public spending by all levels of government now exceeds one-third of total domestic output. The regulatory burden on business continues to increase rapidly, and heightened uncertainty further increases regulations’ negative impact. Fading confidence in the government’s determination to promote or even sustain open markets has discouraged entrepreneurship and dynamic investment within the private sector.”
U.S. tax-and-spend scores are appalling: Among 179 countries surveyed, America is No. 127 in government spending and No. 133 in fiscal freedom, far below average on both counts. The U.S. suffers an “overall tax burden amounting to 24 percent of total domestic income,” the Index states. “Government expenditures have grown to 42.2 percent of GDP, and the budget deficit is close to 10 percent of GDP. Total public debt is now larger than the size of the economy.” Such boulders bow American shoulders.
Meanwhile, U.S. businesspeople moan beneath the regulatory rubble. “Over 70 new major regulations have been imposed since early 2009, with annual costs of more than $38 billion,” the Index observes. “There were only six major deregulatory actions during that time, with reported savings of just $1.5 billion.”
Another problem: “Corruption is a growing concern as the cronyism and economic rent-seeking associated with the growth of government have undermined institutional integrity,” the Index declares. For Freedom from Corruption, the U.S. is ranked No. 22; approximating Transparency International’s finding that America is Earth’s 24th most honest country.
What fuels suspicions of American shadiness? Consider Big Labor’s waivers from Obamacare and the administration’s granting union payouts ahead of the contractually protected claims of Chrysler’s and General Motors’ secured bondholders.
Thanks Mr Murdock for this follow-up to your last article on Hong Kong. I was going to post the ranking there simply because some readers are apparently misinformed about Hong Kong and its economic, fiscal and legal position before and after the Handover in 1997. Of course, the 'one country, two systems' and 'the fifty years and no change' to Hong Kong's capitalistic system and lifestyle as guaranteed by the Basic Law is fast running out. But then, Hong Kong people 港人 (and yes dear reader that's what the self-reference is) are resourceful and China is pragmatic (and ever so slowly changing) so perhaps another fifty years may be negotiated before China's socialist system shall be practiced in the SAR. But then I am an optimist.
Total nonsense. All those nations are hurt by nationalized health care. However, in other areas they are doing better then the US, such as taxes, regulations etc. Economic freedom means "KEEPING YOUR OWN MONEY", not taking it away and giving it to someone else for free cataract surgery,
Obamacare isn't a piece of socialist legislation; it's a piece of corporatist or fascist legislation.
And yes, the US is already a fascist country. We don't yet have the full-blown syndicalism of Mussolini, but much of his corporatismo has been implemented here.
The transformation of the US economy is slow enough that most Americans don't realize why it is happening. The US is walking down the same road that Argentina started down 70 years ago: increasing government intervention and pervasive corruption. On the 2012 Economic Freedom Index, Argentina was near the bottom. You know things are bad when people keep electing the same corrupt and self-serving politicians (we'll see if the same thing happens here in 2012).
Hong Kong?! I'm sure glad that the world's largest Communist (socially speaking) Dictatorship has kept Hong Kong as it's little capitalist enclave. But then again, how much social freedom is there in Hong Kong? As a British Crown Colony, the people of Hong Kong could stand in the streets and say F U to Peking. Can they still do that? I doubt it. As for Chile, she is not all that far away from being one of Latin America's nastiest dictatorships under Pinochet who was ably supported by the United States. Lot's of economic freedom under Pinochet but try bad mouthing him when he was in power and you would disappear into one of his prisons, probably never to be heard from again.
Nice try. Augusto Pinochet has been dead since December 10, 2006. In addition to economic freedom, Chile enjoys competitive elections, an open media, and robust civil liberties. While it might be imprudent to stand up in the middle of Hong Kong's Chater Garden and scream, "I hate the Communist Party of the People's Republic of China!" the media report and comment as they wish, and folks protest all sorts of things. In fact, last November, an Occupy Hong Kong movement actually camped out in the open space beneath HSBC's massive headquarters in Central Hong Kong. Besides, the Heritage/WSJ Index measures ECONOMIC freedom. While economic and political freedom often are related, this Index -- as I wrote - is "agnostic on political freedom." It measures economic liberty and fiscal conditions. Conversely, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch closely scrutinize free speech, political competition, and other civil liberties. For a complete picture on any country or territory, I suggest perusing the Heritage/WSJ Index as well as the rankings of Freedom House, Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch, for political freedoms. Transparency International reports reliably on corruption from country to country. On that score, alas, America also is sinking -- all the way down to No. 24. Earth's most honest nation is No. 1 on that list: New Zealand.
Milton Friedman has also been dead since 2006. Somehow you believe his is responsible for positive political reforms in Chile but not for tacit support of Pinochet. News flash: Being for economic freedom and agnostic on political freedom is a boring way of saying supports tyranny if there's money in it.
I'm from Australia (#3 on the list). We've got great health-care - and it's universally provided in large by the government. Same is the case for all the countries above the US in this list.
I'm not saying 'obamacare' is the answer (it clearly has major flaws) but at the same time, I do take offense to this nonsense many conservatives carry on with about 'socialist health-care systems in other countries', etc
Our country won't stand if only a few have a high standard of living. The nation is not what our parent's knew.
The U.S. was number 1 in many things during the 1950's and 1960's, where is that nation? We are looking more like Mexico and the USSR where the few and the powerful own things and have a high standard of living. The middle class is highly taxed with no benefits. The businesses are highly regulated with no benefits from it. The businesses are trying to leave the country.
We need change to return the country to where most people are making a good enough living to survive with a family.
Wait, you mean Canada with its crazy high taxes(compared to the US) is actually better overall in economic freedom than the US? I thought high taxes were defining issue with regard to economic freedom. Shows what I know I guess.
Even the current "mostly free" designation for the U.S. is far too optimistic, for this designation measures only economic freedom.
Most of the savage destruction of our liberty is occurring (and has occurred) in the area of unnecessary societal limitations on individual speech and unnecessary government limitations on individual behavior. Everything from light bulbs to personal privacy to eagle feathers to pro-life protests.
