Greetings from Montenegro

Different city, different country, but the same speech on the Free Market Road Show. So let's instead focus on what's nice about Montenegro. The scenery is pleasant, if you know what I mean, but this nation also has some attractive policies. It has the world's lowest flat tax, with a rate of just 9 percent (I suggested they go to zero since they're so close anyhow). Government spending is a problem, consuming more than 40 percent of GDP, but they are in better shape than most other European nations.

One of the best things about Montenegro is the sense that the future might be better than the past. The government is at least aware that spending should be reduced. Moreover, there is even a free market private university in the country that is doing a great job educating students about the importance of limited government and individual freedom. The Cato Institute's Richard Rahn, who also spoke at today's conference, has a column in today's Washington Times, discussing this remarkable university:

Professor Vukotic has created a new private university in Montenegro, University of Donja Gorica (UDG), that already has 1,500 students and a large, new building. He has been able to attract world-class scholars from a number of countries, including the United States, to teach or lecture. UDG also already has established cooperative agreements with universities in Europe and North America. ...Montenegro has made much progress toward a free and prosperous society, in part because of the extraordinary work of Mr. Vukotic. It has adopted the euro as its currency even though it is not yet a member of the European Union. It has just put in a 9 percent flat tax and moved toward free trade. Yet Montenegro still has much to do, particularly in protecting private property and eliminating corruption. Its future success will depend much on how well those bright young students can translate what they have learned from Mr. Vukotic and his colleagues by keeping the pressure on the government and the private sector to accelerate and maintain the reforms for an increasingly civil, prosperous and free society.