This is the new Cato/Fraser Economic Freedom Index (h/t Alison Kemper). Wil Wilkinson comments:
[T]he frosty land of toques and chesterfields has leap-frogged the U.S. to take 7th place, completely humiliating the tied-for-8th place land of the ever-less-free, home of the brave. Is it now possible to even half-credibly make the case that the United States, in the age of warrantless wiretaps and the shoeless airport security line, is a freer country than Canada? I doubt it. Read it and weep, fair weather laissez faire yanks.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:59 pm
This index is looking at what it calls “economic freedom”, by which they mean relatively unfettered markets, the goal of the Libertarian Cato Institute. While I don’t disagree with their economic measurements, I don’t think it refers to the kind of freedom Wilkerson is talking about — wiretaps and airline security.
To suggest Singapore or Hong Kong have more political or social freedom than the US is laughable, and I’d guess the same is true of Chile.
On the other hand, there certainly are large overlaps — I could imagine Switzerland, UK, Canada as being freer in many non-economic measures than America.
September 26th, 2008 at 11:09 pm
It’s important to note that this an index of *Economic* Freedom.
The study looks at each country’s economic health, protection of propery (not citizen) rights, credit/labor/business regulations, and tax rates, among other metrics.
Not sure what is the value of the study. Taxes, regulation are bad? Noting that it’s from the Cato Institute, the primary function may be to promote a political viewpoint.
I see that the last-place country, Norway, has chosen by other studies as the country with the best quality-of-life.
b.
September 26th, 2008 at 11:11 pm
Ha! I just saw the comment Michael posted while I was noodling on mine.
Looks like we’re on the same page, Michael.
b.
September 27th, 2008 at 6:15 pm
A better index would measure:
– after-tax income
– social equality and access to health care and social safety nets
– crime rate
– unemployment
– social freedom
– social acceptance
September 27th, 2008 at 6:30 pm
There seems to be much anguish in these comments that the rankings don’t consider other issue. There’s a reason for this: it’s the Economic Freedom of the World, not the Freedom of the World rankings.
Wilkinson did not say the rankings took into consideration wiretaps and airport security. He said that taking the economic freedom and other issues together then the United States is slipping below Canada. He was not arguing the index included such things.
Again Wilkinson never argue that Sinapore or Hong Kong were freer overall. The value of the study is to show where economic freedom exists. I’m not sure why it’s had to understand why that’s important. Nobody’s arguing that economic freedom is the only thing to look at it, but it’s centrally important. Indeed Milton Friedman convincingly argues that economic freedom is very important. He devotes the first capter of Capitalism and Freedom to it: “The Relation between Economic Freedom and Political Freedom”.
September 28th, 2008 at 6:54 am
While I agree that a large measure of economic freedom is a good thing, Milton Friedman and his later adherents are prime examples of why the financial world in the US is melting down. Markets do not self-correct and if left unregulated they do a particularly poor job at distributing wealth or keeping economies from derailing.
So, sorry, but referencing Friedman is merely an argument from authority, and not a very convincing one at that, at least for me.
Indeed, if there was a causal relationship between economic freedom and political freedom, it is demolished by the above graph.
September 28th, 2008 at 7:20 pm
Uh no.
You are sadly mistaken to believe that deregulation is the cause of the economic crisis. In the time period of the last year there has been no significant deregulation, indeed there has been increased regulation. Indeed it is the government itself which provided bad incentives for businesses to take on bad morgages. Don’t believe Naomi Klein just because she wrote a book.
And referencing Friedman on the central issue of his life is no more fallacious then refering to Dr. Florida on urban theory and urban economics. Likewise I didn’t not create an appeal to authority, I merely pointed out that there was a significant amount of work that questions your assumptions.
Finally, it is laugable to say that such an assumption is “demolished by the above graph.” I’ll grant that not all of the countries are completely politically free, but almost every country in the graph save maybe 3 or 4 are not politically free. And even with those countries they are far more politically free than the vast majority of countries around the world.