Friday, October 28, 2011

Economic Freedom & Quality of Life


Would you rather live in Hong Kong or Burundi? Switzerland or the Republic of Congo? The United States or Venezuela? You probably chose the first option in each of those examples, and it's because those countries are more prosperous than the second options. It also happens that they are the most economically free and have higher quality of life!

Economically free countries have lower taxes, lower government spending, less regulation, less volatility of currency, more free trade, and a sound legal structure. They also have higher per capita incomes (especially among the poor), higher life expectancy, less corruption, greater civil liberties, and higher quality of life. This is no coincidence.