Check his Math.
[Edited Version, now that Herman is out]
Former professional mathematician Herman Cain thinks he has the solution, and he calls it “The 9-9-9 Plan“ In Mr. Cain’s favor, it probably is true that if ever we needed a President competent in math, that time is right now. Before he went into the business world, Cain worked as a mathematician professionally, doing rocket ballistics for the Defense Department, and he earned his graduate degree from Purdue University in Mathematics.
—But we need to check his math. As Ronald Reagan said, “Trust, but verify.”
I’ve cut out 9 paragraphs of boring math, suffice it to say that Cain was (is) in the ballpark, and what is especially interesting about “9-9-9′ is that it virtually eliminates embedded taxation, the “hidden taxes” that go into every product and service we purchase. When businesses are taxed, they merely pass it on to the end user in the form of higher prices, which is why a 9% tax sales without embedded taxation results in prices that are lower, not higher, than what we now pay for products and services. Which is the main reason that Arthur Laffer, the economists who designed the explosive Reagan job growth wrote his op-ed in the Wall Street Journal endorsing Cain’s 9-9-9.
