How to agree with 'liberal' economy and its proponents.

Robert Reich this week (Work of Nations, et seq.) and just within the last couple of days has mentioned a thing or two in response to an effort to increase the retirement age in France and the suggestion by some the same thing needs to happen in the U.S.  In a classic example of an economist who thinks of everything, he recommended the income ceiling on the FICA and OASDI should be raised.  Instead of the cynical view that government coffers are never full and always need more revenues to support an increasingly aging population, especially that taking advantage of social security benefits, and thereby calling for the hike in the official Social Security retirement age; Mr. Reich proposes another revenue raiser that would further stratify income by, again, taxing the rich – just make the system more progressive and continue taxing the income and wealth made through wages, for example.

Raising the Social Security tax ceiling is a nice idea, but in fact will raise so little revenue due to the greater and greater minority of highly – compensated (HCI) wage earners having less and less contribution to the tax base and thereby, again, to the overall revenues to the Treasury.  A better analysis and recommendation might be, and people like me do not have all the details, to do what policymakers did for a while in Ireland:  lower the overall business tax baseline and by this stratify the tax revenues of the country.  In Ireland, at least for a while, this resulted in greater tax revenue collections and state and industry and commerce remained happy with the results.  The situation in France is difficult because the electorate is very opinionated against the bureaucracy and subject to ownership of its position as victim thereof:  People like me understand the increase in the retirement age in France as a sign the economy is getting better, at least somewhat lately, and that fortunately people are living longer.  This given even the long and lazy work days sometimes the French have, not to mention the partying and wine – drinking that souses everyone when there’s a good harvest or good holidays, of which there are quite a few.