The numbers behind the promise
DRAFT. This section is not final. It is being reviewed and may change.
Every promise about city money, whether it is a tax, a fee, a raise or a project, comes with numbers. These six lessons teach you to read them. Each lesson pairs one idea from the economist Thomas Sowell with real Williams numbers from the city's own records.
We use Sowell's ideas as questions to ask, not as verdicts. This site takes no side on any tax, fee or vote, and these lessons do not praise or criticize any official. Sowell is one economist. Other economists see these issues differently. Use the questions on any proposal, from anyone.
The six lessons
- Where city money comes from: scarcity and trade-offs.
- Funds, reserves and deficits: incentives and who decides.
- One-time money or ongoing money?: "and then what?"
- What a tax promise really costs: who pays, and judging by results.
- Rates and fees: prices as signals: what a price tells people.
- Per household or per person?: choosing the right number.
Then use the closing checklist on any promise.
Sowell's books we point to. Basic Economics Unverified1, Applied Economics: Thinking Beyond Stage One Unverified2, Economic Facts and Fallacies Unverified3, The Vision of the Anointed Unverified4 and A Conflict of Visions Unverified5. We describe what each book covers from the publisher's description. We have not quoted the books or given page numbers. If you want Sowell's exact words, read the books.
How to read the labels. Figures from the city's documents are marked Verified. Math we did ourselves is marked Calculated. Anything we infer or know only from general knowledge is marked Unverified. Words like General Fund are explained in the glossary.
This is unofficial education, not legal or financial advice. If a number matters to you, check it in the source document.
Sources cited on this page
- Basic Economics: A Common Sense Guide to the Economy (5th ed., 2014; first edition 2000), Thomas Sowell Publisher's catalog page. We rely on the publisher's description (it says the book shows how to critique economic policies by the incentives they create rather than the goals they proclaim). We have not checked page text and quote nothing from the book. ↗
- Applied Economics: Thinking Beyond Stage One (revised ed., 2008; first edition 2004), Thomas Sowell Publisher's catalog page. We rely on the publisher's description (it says the book examines policies not only by their immediate effects but also by their later repercussions). We have not checked page text and quote nothing from the book. ↗
- Economic Facts and Fallacies (2nd ed., 2011; first edition 2008), Thomas Sowell Publisher's catalog page. We rely on the publisher's description (it lists fallacies about urban problems, income differences and other topics). We have not checked page text and quote nothing from the book. ↗
- The Vision of the Anointed: Self-Congratulation as a Basis for Social Policy (1995), Thomas Sowell Google Books catalog record (paperback listed as 1996). We rely on the catalog description and public discussion of the book's trade-off theme. We have not checked page text and quote nothing from the book. ↗
- A Conflict of Visions: Ideological Origins of Political Struggles (1987; revised ed., 2007), Thomas Sowell Publisher's catalog page for the 2007 Basic Books edition. We rely on the publisher's description of the "constrained" and "unconstrained" visions. We have not checked page text and quote nothing from the book. ↗
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