A Stitch in Haste

With Kip's Law in mind, guess who said the following:

This is something that we think will work and that's the only thing we're focused on.

(a) Donald Rumsfeld on the "Baghdad Trench"
(b) Arlen Specter on his NSA bill
(c) Michael Bloomberg on a new city welfare program
(d) Bill Gates on Zune

Tough question, isn't it?

(Hint: It's obviously not (d). I of course wouldn't care if Bill Gates said it. Kip's Law does not apply to private companies. I just ran out of ideas.)

Answer here.

Kip's Law: Every advocate of central planning always — always — envisions himself as the central planner.

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More:

In an effort to reduce the city's high poverty rate, the Bloomberg administration plans to offer tax credits to impoverished families to offset child care costs[.] The tax credits ... would be worth up to $1,000 per child[.]

Of course, the fundamental theorem of public policy is that, if you subsidize something, then you will get more, not less, of it. If you subsidize "poor children," then you are going to get more, not fewer, "poor children." Harsh, but true.

If you want to reduce the number of "poor children," then of course the proper program would be a $1,000 payment, not for childcare, but for accepting contraceptive implants. Such a proposal would, however, inevitably invite cries of "eugenics." So I won't make it. I'll just take the even better libertarian path of "no $1,000 payments for anything, period."

Similar thoughts at EclectEcon.