At the start of a new year and a new decade, it is both humbling and illuminating to reflect on major global developments that no one saw coming just a few decades ago. For those who grew up during the Cold War or in the ensuing period of American primacy, the economic and geopolitical rise of the developing world must rank high on the list.

Last November I had the pleasure of discussing "Top Wealth in the United States: New Estimates and Implications for Taxing the Rich" a very nice paper by Matthew Smith, Owen Zidar and Eric Zwick at the NBER asset pricing meetings, presented by Eric. The paper prompts a series of blog posts on wealth distribution and wealth taxes. I'll try to stick to points that haven't been made a hundred times already.

"When I first visited Hong Kong in 2013,” recalls Mark Milke at The Post Millennial, “almost every politician, civil servant and business leader I met emphasized three priorities”: capitalism, rule of law and anti-corruption. 

Would you date or marry someone who didn’t share your political beliefs? A decade ago, experts say more people were OK wading into romantic waters outside of their political party. But with the increasing polarization of politics at the national level, now, not so much.