Charts of the day

Tax rates and tax revenue, the US vs. Europe:

Remember, a small slice of a big pie is quite often at least as large as a big slice from a small pie. Make sure to check out the accompanying post from Tino at the Super Economy blog. Definitely one of my favorite blogs and a must read for anyone interested in economics.

Update: Let's say that high tax rates slow growth by 1.57% per year. Louis Woodhill explains the difference:

The difference between 2.16% growth and 3.73% growth is enormous...instead of Federal debt rising steadily from 62% of GDP in 2010 to 87% in 2020, 146% in 2030, and 947% in 2084, the debt would peak at 67% of GDP in 2012 and then begin declining. Without any spending cuts and tax increases, it would fall to 60% in 2020 and 52% in 2030. By 2052, the entire national debt would be paid off.

Yowza.