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

Hoxie on “Fixed Group Demand Theory” (the “lump of labor”)

From Robert F. Hoxie, Trade Unionism in the United States, 1917: There is much scorn of unionists by economists and employers because of this lump of labor theory with its corollaries. This scorn is based on the classical supply and demand theory and its variants. Supply is demand. Increased efficiency in production means an increase of […]

McConnell’s AHCA Bill Text and WP Interpretation

I have not had a chance to read through this; but, I thought I would put this out here for all of us to read, Senate Version AHCA McConnell Updated this post with the changes proposed in the McConnell Senate Bill as taken from today’s Washington Post. Washington Post Version How Senate Republicans Plan to […]

Here is Andrew Coulson Series on Virtues of Privatization

Diane Ravitch offers more on schools in America: Here is Andrew Coulson Series on Virtues of Privatization by dianeravitch Watch libertarian Andrew Coulson’s film, now showing on some, not all, PBS stations around the nation. It was paid for by libertarian foundations that support privatization. The lead funder–the Rose-Mary and Jack Anderson Foundation– is a […]

American carnage?

Institute for New Economic Thinking Lance Taylor describes his thinking on the great divide.  Worth a look: President Trump, in his inaugural address and elsewhere, rightly says that over the decades since 1980 American household distributions of income and wealth became strikingly unequal. But if recent budget and legislative proposals from Trump and the House […]

George Borjas on the New Immigration Meme

George Borjas, perhaps the US’ pre-eminent immigration economist notes: Maybe it’s just me because I instinctively read in between the lines whenever I read anything about immigration, but I’m beginning to detect such a seismic shift in the immigration debate. We all know the party line by now: Immigrants do jobs that natives don’t want […]

New book on investment incentives will help shape policies debates for years to come

Lifted from Middle Class Political Economist is the announcement related to  Angry Bear Dr. Kenneth Thomas video series Wednesday, June 29, 2016 New book on investment incentives will help shape policies debates for years to come This past week I received my chapter author’s copy of a new book from Columbia University Press, Rethinking Investment Incentives: […]

Many places in America are essentially devoid of doctors

Via Kevin MD Dr. Kenneth Lin writes another article on disappearing rural medical care.  this is part of the article… I recently attended a conference in Savannah, Georgia sponsored by the Association for Prevention Teaching and Research. Since I haven’t spent much time in Georgia outside of Savannah and Atlanta, the welcoming plenary on improving health […]

One Ohio Town’s Immigration Clash, Down in the Actual Muck

NYT has an interesting article that might provide readers with the details of not only immigration but labor, food supply, agriculture in a mixed reaction to such issues.  I also wonder if planting went smoothly, for instance, as the details of lives get lost in the simplicities of bumper sticker, all or none politics.  This […]

Rethinking rural hospitals

Via Journel of American Medical Association (JAMA) is an invitation us to keep looking at the plight of rural hospitals in light of decreasing rural population. Dr. Diana Mason writes: But other rural communities, home to nearly 20% of the US population, are not so fortunate. Since 2010, 78 of the more than 2150 rural nonspecialty […]

Video series for “Rethinking Investment Incentives”

Video series for “Rethinking Investment Incentives” As regular readers will recall, I contributed to the Columbia Center for Sustainable Investment’s book, Rethinking Investment Incentives: Trends and Policy Options (Columbia University Press, 2016). Now, the editors have put together a series of video teasers for most of the individual chapters, all of which can be seen […]