On March 3 the Collegian printed a story about an instructor at the DuBois Campus using a modified version of Monopoly to illustrate that the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. There is some irony in this, because Monopoly is a prettied-up version of The Landlord's Game, originally invented by a reformer named Elizabeth Magee Phillips to illustrate the theories of the economist Henry George.

Henry George believed that the principal cause of the persistence of poverty amid growing wealth was land monopoly. His solution was to impose a single tax on the value of the land, and abolish all other taxes. This would promote equality by depriving landowners of their special privilege, providing a source of revenue for public needs, and leaving people free to keep all that they produce by their labor and capital. This old idea has been enjoying something of a revival recently; there are now 17 cities in Pennsylvania that tax land at a higher rate than buildings, thereby encouraging the production of housing instead of punishing it.

Those who want to learn more may want to read George's works, which are available in Pattee. I'm also quite willing to talk with people who are interested.