Steve Forbes, president and executive officer of Forbes, Inc.,
advocated democratization of the Middle East and a flat-tax plan
for the United States in a speech he gave Tuesday at the Anderson
School at UCLA.
Forbes, who spoke as part of the Anderson School’s
Distinguished Speakers Series, is editor in chief of Forbes
Magazine, one of the nation’s leading business journals.
Dedicating a major portion of his speech to the war in Iraq,
Forbes said the situation the United States faces today is similar
to the one it faced in the post-World War II era. The difficulty of
combatting terrorism is analogous to that of fighting and
containing communism during the Cold War era, Forbes said.
“Just as communism, fascism and totalitarianism were
defeated, this new movement will be defeated,” Forbes
said.
Forbes said though the idea of a Middle East constituted by
democratic nations may seem far-fetched, the idea of a democratic
Europe was, for many, unthinkable just 50 years ago.
Linking the war to economics, Forbes asked the audience to
envision a post-war Iraq with “a system that allows for
entrepreneurship” and a “rule of law where people feel
safe and secure.”
Such a nation, Forbes said, would be a great achievement for
both Iraq and the United States, regardless of Iraqi feelings
toward the United States.
“The French don’t love us,” Forbes said.
“But better to have France than the kind of Iraq we had under
Saddam Hussein.”
Forbes added that as the war winds down, the economy is likely
to move forward.
“Sales are growing faster than inventories. … Even
information technology is starting to show new signs of
life,” Forbes said.
Another key component of Forbes’ presentation, which
coincided with tax day, was the advocation of a flat-tax plan.
Under Forbes’ proposed tax plan, the percent tax rate imposed
in the United States would be equal for all people earning income,
regardless of their levels of wealth.
“The advantage is that it’s very simple, very fair
““ the more money you make, the more taxes you pay,”
Forbes said.
Forbes added that his tax plan would greatly simplify existing
tax plans, eliminating much of the confusion that comes with filing
taxes every April 15.
“The federal income code for tax regulations is 8 million
words and rising,” Forbes said. “I pity the poor
archaeologist who digs this thing up and wonders, “˜what in
the world does this mean?'”
Forbes’ tax plan would allow people to choose between
remaining with the current system or changing to the flat-tax
system.
A lowered tax rate, Forbes said, would be ideal even if flat
taxes are not implemented. He said if tax rates were lowered, it
would have a positive effect on the economy because people would
have more incentive to work hard and become successful.
“When you lower the price on good things, you get more of
them. It’s a very simple proposition,” Forbes said.
“Lower tax rates … always means, over time, more government
revenue. It always means a stronger economy.”
Ron Anderson, who is a student in Anderson’s Fully
Employed MBA Program, said he knew about Forbes’ flat-tax
proposal and was interested in hearing what else Forbes had to
say.
“I just wanted to hear what (Forbes) had to say about
business … I figured I could use some of his advice,”
Anderson said. “I just wanted to leave with an idea of where
the economy is headed ““ what areas of the business sectors
are going to be hot.”