Message from the Author
“As a Chinese language student in Hong Kong in 1963, I witnessed a remarkable scene—the existence of the world’s freest economy on the border of Communist China, the world’s most centrally controlled economy. From that beginning, I concentrated on a few, intertwined, universal questions: (1) the emergence, maintenance, and loss of economic freedom, with a detailed investigation of Hong Kong’s future as it passed from British to Chinese sovereignty in 1997; (2) analyses of tax systems in the United states and around the world, leading to my role in developing the flat tax and promoting its adoption in more than 40 countries to foster growth and prosperity; (3) racial and ethnic rivalry that fuels conflict, breaks up nations into its racial/ethnic components, and fosters secessionist movements, but showing how free markets can help to curtail conflict and sustain democracy in plural societies.
A fourth universal question is coping with the costs of caring for an ever-increasing elderly population as older Americans move from independent living in their own homes to dependent care facilities. I have proposed several solutions to help manage this financial burden.
My latest writing on these and other current issues can be found on my two blogs: one devoted exclusively to the flat tax movement, the second on a broad range of social, economic, and political issues.” Alvin Rabushka