An issue first highlighted by the NH Associated Press and NH "Union Leader" has received national attention. Not that that is necessarily a good thing...

As some are aware, a man named Brad Wilder, of Plainfield, was shocked to discover that the valuation of his property, upon which his property tax will be based, of course, had shot up dramatically after he was cited as having a very "expensive" view!

See the Washington Post article discussing the topic...

Despite the frustration this type of government activity can inspire, it does serve a purpose... This issue is a very good point from which one can launch into a discussion about valuation of property (any type of property, including money property, ie., earnings), and how the valutaion of property is purely subjective. The reporting on the "view tax" indicates one of the few times that the mass media are recognizing the impossibility of objectively quantifying the value of something which is, by its nature, subjectively enterpreted. The "view tax" can be a terrific issue to help focus on how all taxes are of this nature, and to show how only through the free market, where prices are determined by the players involved, can price information be transmitted.

This was an insight that economist Ludwig von Mises offered many decades ago, but don't count on the pop media learning the larger lessson!