2. Interesting links from the FT
Apple: Innovator’s dilemma
Fast-evolving technologies provide a typical context for disruptive innovations. In this type of environment, diagnosing a company on being just an incremental innovator should unveil a red light.
A case remains for economic liberalism
Unethical economic liberalism in an unequal market structure might be as bad as social democracy without a culture of effort and a work ethic.
3. lots of fascinating ideas here on whether one should consume locally
http://www.econlib.org/library/Columns/y2011/LuskNorwoodlocavore.html
4. Marginal tax rates in the UK
http://johnhcochrane.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/benefits-trap-art.html#more
I dont know if these graphs are true, there is no citation other than internal government sources
A quick look at the IFS website finds this
http://www.familyandparenting.org/Resources/FPI/Documents/FPI_IFS_Austerity_Jan_2012.pdf
p.29 a selection of marginal particicipation and in work tax rates of near 53% on average.
And more detail is here on page 15ff
http://www.ifs.org.uk/wps/wp1024.pdf
A quote sum up participation tax rates.
Figure 2.4 shows the cumulative distribution of PTRs for the whole adult
population below state pension age, including non-workers using
predicted earnings in work as described above. Reading across, we can see
that around 20% of adults under the state pension age have PTRs below
40%, and 30% have PTRs above 60%. This means that around half of
adults below the state pension age have PTRs in a relatively narrow band
from 40% to 60% – their earnings can buy them about half of what they
cost their employer. It is also clear that one of the reasons non-workers do
not work is that the incentive for them to work at all is, on average, weaker
– around 30% of non-workers have PTRs above 70%, compared to only
10% of workers. Indeed, of those who have PTRs greater than 70%, 60%
do not work.
And effective marginal tax rates
There is a small but significant group of around 10% of workers who
would only keep between 17p and 27p of each additional pound they
earned. This is because they face steep withdrawal of tax credits or
housing benefit if they increased their earnings a little.
My reading of the graph is that 20% of workers face >60% marginal tax rates.
Remarkably, these burdens have hardly changed over time.
