<P> John Dewey wrote, "It would require less than the fingers of the two hands to enumerate those who from Plato down rank with him," and that "No man, no graduate of a higher educational institution, has a right to regard himself as an educated man in social thought unless he has some first - hand acquaintance with the theoretical contribution of this great American thinker ." Albert Jay Nock wrote that anyone who rediscovers Henry George will find that "George was one of the first half - dozen (greatest) minds of the nineteenth century, in all the world ." The anti-war activist John Haynes Holmes echoed that sentiment by commenting that George was "one of the half - dozen great Americans of the nineteenth century, and one of the outstanding social reformers of all time ." Edward McGlynn said, "(George) is one of the greatest geniuses that the world has ever seen, and...the qualities of his heart fully equal the magnificent gifts of his intellect...He is a man who could have towered above all his equals in almost any line of literary or scientific pursuit ." Likewise, Leo Tolstoy wrote that George was "one of the greatest men of the 19th century ." </P> <P> The social scientist and economist John A. Hobson observed in 1897 that "Henry George may be considered to have exercised a more directly powerful formative and educative influence over English radicalism of the last fifteen years than any other man," and that George "was able to drive an abstract notion, that of economic rent, into the minds of a large number of' practical' men, and so generate therefrom a social movement . George had all the popular gifts of the American orator and journalist, with something more . Sincerity rang out of every utterance ." Many others agree with Hobson . George Bernard Shaw claims that Henry George was responsible for inspiring 5 out of 6 socialist reformers in Britain during the 1880s, who created socialist organizations such as the Fabian Society . The controversial People's Budget and the Land Values (Scotland) Bill were inspired by Henry George and resulted in a constitutional crisis and the Parliament Act 1911 to reform of the House of Lords, which had blocked the land reform . In Denmark, the Danmarks Retsforbund, known in English as the Justice Party or Single - Tax Party, was founded in 1919 . The party's platform is based upon the land tax principles of Henry George . The party was elected to parliament for the first time in 1926, and they were moderately successful in the post-war period and managed to join a governing coalition with the Social Democrats and the Social Liberal Party from the years 1957--60, with diminishing success afterwards . </P> <P> Non-political means have also been attempted to further the cause . A number of "Single Tax Colonies" were started, such as Arden, Delaware and Fairhope, Alabama . In 1904, Lizzie Magie created a board game called The Landlord's Game to demonstrate George's theories . This was later turned into the popular board game Monopoly . </P> <P> Joseph Jay "J.J." Pastoriza led a successful Georgist movement in Houston . Though the Georgist club, the Houston Single Tax League, started there in 1890, Pastoriza lent use of his property to the league in 1903 . He retired from the printing business in 1906 in order to dedicate his life to public service, then traveled the United States and Europe while studying various systems of taxing property . He returned to Houston and served as Houston Tax Commissioner from 1911 through 1917 . He introduced his "Houston Plan of Taxation" in 1912: improvements to land and merchants' inventories were taxed at 25 percent of appraised value, unimproved land was taxed at 70 percent of appraisal, and personal property was exempt . However, in 1915, two courts ruled that the Houston Plan violated the Texas Constitution . </P>

Who came up with the idea that the government should own all property