Relevant and even prescient commentary on news, politics and the economy.

Why the Rich Hate Inflation: Because They’re Creditors?

Paul Krugman and assorted others have been puzzling at this question recently, one that I’ve been grinding an axe about for some years. For the first time, I think, Krugman’s highlighted the explanation that I keep going on about: Inflation helps debtors and hurts creditors, deflation does the reverse. And the wealthy are much more likely than […]

Finding Themselves On Third Base and Thinking They Hit a Triple

The White American Dream Game Just listening to the level of noise coming from some posters complaining about low income workers, how they caused their own predicament, and this is why they are unable to move upwards on the ladder of mobility. Low income and unskilled workers do not work hard enough, they did not […]

Tesla deal even worse than first thought

Via an email from Greg LeRoy of Good Jobs First, we learn that the Tesla deal, as enacted by the Nevada Legislature, is even worse than announced. Aside from the widely touted 6500 jobs only being 6000 jobs for which the state is paying for, it turns out that Tesla doesn’t even have to create […]

Is labor force participation dropping due to a falling labor share?

A comment on a previous post said that the unemployment rate is under-measuring the true unemployment rate due to people having withdrawn from the labor market. The low labor force participation rate would reflect this view. Is the 6.1% unemployment rate a reliable measure of un- and under-employment? One model for the supply & demand […]

How The Rich Rule US Democracy

Via Social Europe Journal, Dani Rodrik points to both a perennial question on economic self-interests and elections: Martin Gilens of Princeton University and Benjamin Page of Northwestern University, have recently produced some stark findings for the United States that have dramatic implications for the functioning of democracy – in the US and elsewhere. … When […]

Economists: Lawyers? Shysters? Touts?

Paul Krugman has taken aim at the profession here and here. It is not just being wrong sometimes…   by Sandwichman at Econospeak writes: Economists: Lawyers? Shysters? Touts? “Basically, a lot of economists use the tools of science to accomplish literary– or lawyerly — goals.” — Noah Smith, Economics Isn’t Science or Literature If that’s […]

How should your community manage its water?

By David Zetland at Aguanomics, author of Living with Water Scarcity [free download for Angry Bear members] How should your community manage its water? MB asked one last question after my AWRA seminar: You said that each location should decide which system/structure they think is best for their context, but in the places you’ve traveled […]

1/3 of Medicare Spending is Wasted

Urban Legend— You write: That claim that one-third of Medicare spending is wasted sounds pretty questionable to me.” This is your opinion. If you had spent the last 20 years working as a medical researcher investigating unnecessary treatment, your opinion would be of great interest to all of us; but, I’m assuming you have not […]