The Dutch Blueprint for the Global Middle Class Heist

Posted on February 27, 2026 by MN Gordon

“Meten is weten.” (Measuring is knowing)

– Dutch proverb

Taxing Phantoms

If you want to see the future of socialism and its rabid appetite to consume your life savings, you don’t have to look at the history books. Instead, look at the Netherlands.

On February 12, 2026, the Dutch House of Representatives passed the Actual Return in Box 3 Act (Wet werkelijk rendement box 3). On the surface, it’s promoted as a fairness correction to a system the Dutch Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional in 2021. In reality, it is a financial suicide note that turns every investor into a tenant of the state.

Instead of returning to sanity following the Supreme Court ruling, the Hague doubled down. This new bill is the supposed correction. But it replaces the prior tax on assumed return with a rapacious system that treats your portfolio’s fluctuating value as a liquid ATM for the state.

This legislative overreach ignores the fundamental principle of private property, effectively penalizing success before it is even realized. It also signals a predatory shift where the fruits of your labor and risk-taking are no longer your own, but rather a communal pool for bureaucratic redistribution. Continue reading →

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Grinding the American Middle Class to Dust

Posted on February 20, 2026 by MN Gordon

The housing market, for much of the 20th century, was the bedrock of the American Dream. Home ownership, and the financial stability it represents, was a sure path to middle-class prosperity.

That dream turned to a nightmare for many American families during the epic real estate bubble and subsequent bust in 2008-09. What’s more, in the near two decades that followed, federal monetary policies coupled with restrictive local development standards have huffed and puffed an even more perilous bubble than the last one.

Now the crumbling façade of American real estate and the associated economic squeeze has become too great to ignore. To understand why the real estate market is falling apart, you must look at who’s expected to buy the houses. The arithmetic simply doesn’t work.

We’ve reached the point where discretionary income, the money left over after you’ve paid for basic needs, has effectively vanished for much of the population. When 67 percent of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, saving for a down payment is impossible. Continue reading →

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California and The Art of Economic Suicide

Posted on February 13, 2026 by MN Gordon

“The art of economics consists in looking not merely at the immediate but at the longer effects of any act or policy; it consists in tracing the consequences of that policy not merely for one group but for all groups.”

– Henry Hazlitt, Economics in One Lesson (1946)

The Golden Fleece

Have you heard of California’s latest act of economic suicide? Once again, the Golden State’s come up with new and ridiculous ways to turn gold into lead.

If you haven’t been watching the headlines, the 2026 California Billionaire Tax Act (Initiative No. 25-0024) is officially making its way onto the stage. Sponsored by the SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West, this ballot measure wants to slap a one-time 5 percent excise tax on the net worth of every individual in the state worth over $1 billion.

The measure’s sales pitch even has a nice, philanthropic ring to it: “Eat the rich to save the sick.”

In reality, it’s a classic case of what happens when a state treats its most productive citizens like an ATM with an infinite balance. It’s also another fine example of why California’s circling the toilet bowl. Continue reading →

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The Tale of Mr. Scrap Metal

Posted on February 10, 2026 by MN Gordon

When a national economy has been completely overrun by a crooked socialist political class, hope, along with prospects for individual prosperity, fades. Decisions cease to be made for financial or economic reasons. Instead, entrenched politics and corruption direct the flow of capital to the greedy insiders at the expense of the many.

Today we return with another guest article from our friend Joel Bowman and his Notes From the End of the World. If you recall, Mr. Bowman, from his outpost in Buenos Aires, Argentina, has a front row seat to what he’s dubbed, The Greatest Political Experiment of Our Time.

Over the last two years, President Javier Milei has executed aggressive shock therapy. He’s slashed government spending, halved ministries, and eliminated thousands of bureaucratic roles to crush hyperinflation and dismantle a corrupt, statist political caste.

The best way to understand what this means, really, is through tales and anecdotes offered by elders who’ve lived through the endless decades of political and economic corruption. If this interests you, you’re in for a real treat. Continue reading →

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