Home / Quotes / Quote by James M. Buchanan

Quote by James M. Buchanan

“If you have an area where high-income receivers concentrate, you have a higher fiscal capacity. That fiscal capacity is a valuable resource and will create rent-seeking. People will trying to get that resource one way or the other, including immigration. It is very much like the medieval peasants putting their sheep on the commons pasture. It is better than the open range, and if you let them have open access they will, in fact, put too many sheep on the pasture and waste the value that the pasture has.”

Quote by James M. Buchanan

Author

James M. Buchanan

James M. Buchanan was a distinguished economist known for his contributions to the theory of public choice. He was born on October 3, 1919, and passed away on January 9, 2013. Buchanan's theories had a profound impact on understanding government behavior and market mechanisms. more

You May Also Like

“We want to limit the exploitation of the fiscal capacity of the richer regions by keeping down the rate of immigration to a level that would be meaningful and efficient. One way to do that is to have a scheme of equalization which essential bribes people to stay in the poorer regions.”

People Way Want Would Be Levels Limits Essentials Capacity Rate Meaningful Immigration One Way Regions Efficient Schemes Exploitation Bribe

Author:James M. Buchanan

“America is perhaps excessively mobile in the sense that there is sometimes not enough stability in communities. Dynamism in the economy is not necessarily the "be all and end all".”

Ends Sometimes Enough America Community Economy Stability Mobile Dynamism

Author:James M. Buchanan

“If politicians get money to spend and don't have to be responsible for taxation, then of course that will bias their attitude toward more spending as opposed to cutting back on spending.”

Ifs Courses Attitude Cutting Politician Responsible Spending Bias Taxation Being Responsible Get Money

Author:James M. Buchanan

“You can get a coalition of senators from particular states in America, for example, who want to construct highways or dams or ports which may well be very inefficient. The taxes would be paid by the people over the whole country, but the benefits would go to the few people in those particular locations. This type of spending is a rather gross waste of resources that worsened over the years as the government has been allowed to do more particularized things.”

“Few will have the greatness to bend history itself; but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total; of all those acts will be written the history of this generation.”

Source: Make Gentle the Life of the World: The Vision of Robert F. Kennedy

“If you are going to spend for one group, you have to spend the same for every group, just like if you tax one group you have to tax everybody. You have to go back to having more general laws, more general taxes and more general spending programs.”

Ifs Law Groups Taxes Program Spending

Author:James M. Buchanan

“Clearly, I am not an anarchist. Philosophically, I might be, but I think in practical terms.”

Thinking Might Term Practicals Anarchist

Author:James M. Buchanan

“You have to have a government to provide you with legal order, with stability, enforcement of property rights, enforcement of contracts, definition of rules and regulations - the rules of the game, so to speak - and to provide certain shared goods and services, public services. Several people have tried to estimate this and they come out with figures like government spending at 15% of GDP. In the modern world it has gone to 40% or above. So we are way beyond the optimal, and that is easier to say than what the optimum is.”

“Rent control is one policy that economists universally would oppose. It is a grossly inefficient way of allocating housing space and, of course, it inhibits construction and creates the very thing it is supposed to alleviate. It is one of those things where people simply don't understand simple economics and, therefore, put in for political reasons what will damage the very people that it is designed to help. Minimum wage levels are another classic example.”

People Way Reason Helping Political Courses Simple Space Levels Policy Example Economics Classic Damage Construction Minimum Economist Housing Minimum Wage Alleviate Rent Control

Author:James M. Buchanan

“Politically, sometimes you get situations where rent control will go through. It is especially true in an emergency, where there is a sudden, sharp increase in demand for housing or a cut back in supply. People will simply not allow the marketplace to allocate housing resources and so you get pressures for rent control. Once you have it, it is hard to eliminate.”

People Sometimes Hard Situation Cutting Demand Resources Increase Pressure Emergencies Housing Marketplace Rent Control

Author:James M. Buchanan