Wealth & Poverty Review Hong Kong is Number One
Sure, Hong Kong is not number one on every scale, but year after year, this former British Protectorate that is now part of the People’s Republic of China, gets first place in the Index of Economic Freedom. (The US has dropped to tenth place.) Hong Kong is crowded, a bit polluted, and the streets with public markets are definitely garish. But it’s also a living testimony to economic freedom. The columnist Deroy Murdock is living in Hong Kong at the moment and gives a terrific overview of the place in National Review.
The whole thing is worth reading, but I especially like the suggestion of Richard Wong of the Hong Kong Center for Economic Research. For those Americans who think that Hong Kong’s trade policies wouldn’t work for the US, Wong suggests that we show at least as much initiative as the communist leaders of China have shown: allow Hong Kong like policies in one American city, and see what happens. Cool idea, though I’m not holding my breath for the White House to jump on Wong’s advice.