A Neglected Thinker, Part Two
Mar. 16th, 2024 03:36 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ndrosenTo continue with my account of my presentation on February 28, “Henry George: A Neglected Thinker, His Thoughts, and Their Relevance in Today’s World,” here, roughly, is what I said, after describing George’s inquiry in Progress and Poverty:
“I’ll summarize George’s views, but first let me tell you a story. A man wanted land on which to build a house, so he went to a realtor. ‘I know a lot for sale which should be suitable,’ she said. ‘I can show it to you.’
“So they went to a vacant lot in the town, and he agreed that it would suit his needs. ‘How much does it cost?’ he asked.
“‘Two hundred thousand dollars,’ she answered.
“‘Two hundred thousand dollars? But for two hundred thousand dollars, I could buy many acres of the most fertile farmland in Iowa, or miles of arid land out west. What’s so special about this land that makes it worth two hundred thousand dollars?’
“‘This land is in a major metropolitan area with plenty of job opportunities, shopping, theaters, museums, and so forth. There are highways, and there’s a Metro stop three blocks away if you want to get to the big city. Furthermore, this land is in a very pleasant suburb of the metropolitan area; we have a low crime rate, thanks in part to our excellent police force. We have good public schools, so you can get your children a quality education without having to pay private school tuition. And in case of an emergency, the police, or the fire department, or an ambulance will come right away.’
“‘In that case,’ said the man, ‘I guess the land really is worth two hundred thousand dollars. How do I make the check payable?’
“‘To John Smith.’
“‘I take it, then, that Mr. Smith is in charge of distributing funds to police, the schools, the road crews, the subway authority, and so forth.’
“‘Why, no,’ answered the realtor. ‘Mr. Smith is a private investor. I believe he bought the land twenty or thirty years ago, before the Violet Line was extended to this town. Now he’s retired, living in Florida, and wants to take his profits on the investment he made.’
“‘But in that case,’ asked the man, ‘how do you pay for the government services that help make the land so valuable?’
“‘Why, out of taxes, of course,’ the realtor answered. ‘There’s the property tax, mostly on buildings, there’s sales tax, some other taxes, and there’s income tax on what people earn.’
“With that little tale as a provocation to thought, what did Henry George say in Progress and Poverty?”
To be continued.
“I’ll summarize George’s views, but first let me tell you a story. A man wanted land on which to build a house, so he went to a realtor. ‘I know a lot for sale which should be suitable,’ she said. ‘I can show it to you.’
“So they went to a vacant lot in the town, and he agreed that it would suit his needs. ‘How much does it cost?’ he asked.
“‘Two hundred thousand dollars,’ she answered.
“‘Two hundred thousand dollars? But for two hundred thousand dollars, I could buy many acres of the most fertile farmland in Iowa, or miles of arid land out west. What’s so special about this land that makes it worth two hundred thousand dollars?’
“‘This land is in a major metropolitan area with plenty of job opportunities, shopping, theaters, museums, and so forth. There are highways, and there’s a Metro stop three blocks away if you want to get to the big city. Furthermore, this land is in a very pleasant suburb of the metropolitan area; we have a low crime rate, thanks in part to our excellent police force. We have good public schools, so you can get your children a quality education without having to pay private school tuition. And in case of an emergency, the police, or the fire department, or an ambulance will come right away.’
“‘In that case,’ said the man, ‘I guess the land really is worth two hundred thousand dollars. How do I make the check payable?’
“‘To John Smith.’
“‘I take it, then, that Mr. Smith is in charge of distributing funds to police, the schools, the road crews, the subway authority, and so forth.’
“‘Why, no,’ answered the realtor. ‘Mr. Smith is a private investor. I believe he bought the land twenty or thirty years ago, before the Violet Line was extended to this town. Now he’s retired, living in Florida, and wants to take his profits on the investment he made.’
“‘But in that case,’ asked the man, ‘how do you pay for the government services that help make the land so valuable?’
“‘Why, out of taxes, of course,’ the realtor answered. ‘There’s the property tax, mostly on buildings, there’s sales tax, some other taxes, and there’s income tax on what people earn.’
“With that little tale as a provocation to thought, what did Henry George say in Progress and Poverty?”
To be continued.
