Taxes are fascinating things. They have changed history, shaped society, and, continue to be one of the biggest tools policymakers use to meet their objectives. Taxes have changed, shaped, and are tools because they change behavior—people work differently, consume differently, dress differently, eat differently, breed differently, etc., because of the taxes imposed on them. I love hearing examples of interesting situations where the intersection of taxes and incentives meet, and the often unintended consequence of this intersection. Which is why I loved the new book, Rebellion, Rascals, and Revenue: Tax Follies and Wisdom through the Ages by Michael Keen and Joel Slemrod.
The book has amazing tax story after amazing tax story, highlighting important concepts in public economics about how people respond to incentives, and how to think about taxes, public policy, and economics. I highly recommend it.
Lil Mills, Interim Dean of the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin, will be hosting a discussion about the book with Joel and Mick on April 1. Tune in and hear about this amazing book.
