Monday, January 24, 2011

The Major Barrier to Job Creation: Wages

"Stymie" is a weird word.

Excerpts from The State Column post of 18 January 2011:
...President Obama will announce a government-wide review of federal regulations, aiming to eliminate rules that stymie economic growth.

In an article published in the opinion pages of The Wall Street Journal, Mr. Obama says he plans to sign an executive order aimed at making “sure we avoid excessive, inconsistent and redundant regulation.” Mr. Obama says he hopes to eliminate regulations stifling job creation.

Business leaders have complained publicly about burdensome regulations, claiming they are a barrier to job creation.

Nothing new here. None of the rules are changing. Regulations may change, but that's not the same thing at all.

Business leaders have complained publicly about burdensome regulations, claiming they are a barrier to job creation.

Regulations are not the only thing that's "burdensome." For business, wages are a burden, too. And taxes. And even the prices charged by other businesses are a burden. What's unstated here is the view that regulations are optional.

That is not an assumption that should be made with confidence.

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