WanSaiful.com

Personal thoughts of Wan Saiful Wan Jan

April 14, 2010 • 11:00 pm 0

Cheaper iPads and Nike Shoes!!!

The campaign below was part of my think tank MBA project. I am no longer doing this.

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I was in Washington DC last week and was shocked to see that prices of items there are more expensive than in Virginia, which is just a short drive away (I am in Virginia now). Washington DC imposes a higher sales tax than in Virginia, resulting in higher prices for us, consumers.

A friend was on vacation in Delaware not long ago and he told me prices there are even cheaper than both Washington DC and Virginia because there is NO SALES TAX there!

Please have a look at the attached file.

An iPad in DC costs US$529, but only US$519 in Virgina and US$499 in Delaware. Sales Tax in DC makes an iPad more expensive for consumers.

A pair of Nike Air shoes in DC costs US$196, but only US$192 in Virginia and US$182 in Delaware. Again, Sales Tax in DC makes them more expensive.

But Washington DC is where many people live and they want to buy things without having to drive 3 hours to Delaware. Why should they be penalized for living, working or just visiting the nation’s capital?

So a group of friends and I have started a campaign to call for a lower sales tax in DC.

If you believe you deserve a lower sales tax and cheaper items, please sign our petition: http://www.petitiononline.com/mod_perl/signed.cgi?lowtaxDC

Join our Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lower-Tax-in-DC/117344998282973

Visit our website: http://lowtaxdc.wordpress.com/petition/

Join us in this campaign to lower sales tax in DC. A lower sales tax benefits everyone. We need your help to make prices in DC cheaper. Lower tax is good for us because it means we can save our money for other items. Lower tax is good for DC too because it will enable DC to attract more consumers therefore boosting its economy.

To support the campaign for wider tax reform, visit: http://www.atr.org/

Filed under: Freedom & Liberty , , ,

• 1:07 pm 0

Remembering Watergate scandal

I read about the Watergate Scandal – the scandal that ended Nixon’s presidency – many many years ago. Well, this evening I had the pleasure of having dinner at one of the penthouses in the Watergate Complex. The view from the top floor is simply breathtaking.

Rooftop of Watergate East. To the right is famous office complex.

Gossip of the night: Monica Lewinsky lived in the building to the left.

Filed under: Personal

April 12, 2010 • 2:55 am 2

Capitalist vs Socialist, and Maslow’s Hierarchy

How come left-leaning (read: socialist) organisations are usually more successful than free-market ones? In our discussion today, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs was suggested as one way to answer the question.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Left-leaning organisations focus more on issues at the bottom of the hiearchy. For example, they talk about eradicating poverty which falls into the very base of Maslow’s triangle (physiological needs).

On the other hand, many free-market organisations folow the Hayek-Fisher tradition and deal with mainly intellectual issues, which is right at the top of Maslow’s hierarchy.

As a result, socialists get a much wider audience whereas we capitalists attract relatively much smaller number.

Solution: try to talk more about how market ideas can fulfill the basic needs.

Filed under: Freedom & Liberty

April 11, 2010 • 11:12 am 0

What am I? by John Stossel

This is a good article.

John Stossel briefly touches on why it is not ‘cruel’ to say that the government should not provide welfare (because the government creates more problem when they try to do it)

Filed under: Personal

April 10, 2010 • 11:11 am 0

Of consumption tax (read GST if in Malaysia)

While thinking about whether or not to buy an iPad today, I realised that I wasn’t just thinking about whether or not to buy, but also where to buy.

The question that came to my head was, “since I will be traveling to Virginia, Washington DC and Florida, where will be the cheapest place to buy one, if I decided to go ahead and buy?”.

Prices here vary because different states have different rates for sales tax. That is one benefit of fiscal decentralisation – states can compete to attract consumers.

Malaysian states should demand this right in the debate about GST.

Filed under: Malaysia ,

April 2, 2010 • 3:42 pm 0

MalaysiaKini TV

I was interviewed by Malaysiakini TV earlier today about the New Economic Model. Others on the panel were Richard Yeoh (REFSA) and Akhramsyah Sanusi (MAYC). It should be available for viewing early next week.

I was pushing the view that the NEM is a good start. It is committed to initiate a liberalising process of Malaysia’s economy. But it stopped short of being fully committed to a liberal economic agenda. For example, while the NEM document said it is bad for government to crowd the market by having government linked companies (GLCs), the only effort to rectify the problem is by selling of government’s stakes in a small number / selected GLCs. But the real problem is the very existence of GLCs. The problem is not just the companies that have been selected to be divested, but the likes of Petronas, Khazanah, TNB, TM, etc.

I got a bit stuck when asked should the government help the poor. I have no doubt that the government SHOULD NOT get involved in providing welfare. Looking at Malaysia’s experience, when the government tries to deliver welfare, it quickly became selective and political. But I do not yet know how that could be stopped in Malaysia. I know the principle, but I don’t yet know the “how”.

Filed under: Malaysia

• 3:26 pm 0

Legasi Frederic Bastiat

There is a video on www.AkademiMerdeka.org discussing a lesson from Frederic Bastiat with comments Dr Tom Palmer. Check out this link: http://akademimerdeka.org/2010/04/02/disastrous-economic-fallacies-terror-as-stimulus/

And, Noor Amin Ahmad has written a beautiful essay in Malay about Bastiat’s legacy, which can be accessed here: http://akademimerdeka.org/2010/04/02/bastiat-apa-yang-boleh-kita-belajar-dari-dia/

Filed under: Personal

March 15, 2010 • 12:15 am 3

Visit to Dachau Concentration Camp

Dachau Concentration Camp is about 40 minutes outside of Munich. It was the first one to be built, and eventually became a model for all other concentration camps under Hitler.

We in Malaysia are usually told that concentration camps were built for Jews. But Dachau was actually initially built for political prisoners – those who opposed Hitler for whatever reasons, including political and religious (mainly Catholics and Jesuits). Jews were brought in several years later.

I visited the camp with friends from 4 countries this afternoon – Arif (India), Isaac (Ghana), Kamilla (Kyrgyzstan), and Sevgi and Hasan (Turkish). Including travel time, we spent 5 hours together for this trip.

The temperature must have been about 2C, and it was snowing. We thought it was freezing cold. I just cannot imagine what it must have been like for the prisoners who did not have the luxury of jackets and warm clothing like we did. Never again.

Filed under: Personal

March 11, 2010 • 1:31 am 0

In Gummersbach and Bonn

Filed under: Misc, Personal

February 22, 2010 • 12:51 pm 0

Visit to Taiwan

Some photos from my recent trip to Taipei (31 Jan 2010 – 4 Feb 2010) to attend the International Democrat Union executive meeting.

IDU Executive Meeting in session

With former Prime Minister of Australia John Howard

Taipei 101, right next door to our hotel

A visit to Taipei's Snake Alley Night Market. Nothing special there, disappointingly.

Visit to Northern Coast area. Weird rock formation.

View from the mountain village of Jiufen. The market here is very nice.

A tea-house in Jiufen. This one is just brilliant!

Filed under: Personal ,

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