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

Weekly Indicators for August 2 – 6 at Seeking Alpha

 by New Deal democrat Weekly Indicators for August 2 – 6 at Seeking Alpha My Weekly Indicators post is up at Seeking Alpha. Although the Delta wave is raging, nothing is impacting behavior. Neither producers nor consumers appear to have altered their behavior in any significant way at all because of the Delta. As usual, clicking […]

The absolute general law of capitalist accumulation is what “our pamphleteer” overlooked…

The absolute general law of capitalist accumulation is what “our pamphleteer” overlooked.. Our pamphleteer overlooks two things: The greater the social wealth, the functioning capital, the extent and energy of its growth, and, therefore, also the absolute mass of the proletariat and the productiveness of its labour, the greater is the industrial reserve army. The […]

Israel Pays For Bibi’s Successful Campaign Against The JCPOA Iran Nuclear Agreement

Israel Pays For Bibi’s Successful Campaign Against The JCPOA Iran Nuclear Agreement  In the last few days for the first time in many years, northern Israel has been on the receiving end of rockets fired out of southern Lebanon, the territory under the control of the Shia Hezbollah group long supported by Iranian interests, although […]

Trade Deficit at a Record High in June, Rises 6.7%

on Surge in Imports of Industrial Supplies and Materials, Commenter/Blogger RJS at MarketWatch 666 US trade deficit was at a record high in June after rising by 6.7% from May, as the value of both our exports and our imports increased, but our imports increased by nearly five times as much . . . the Commerce Department report […]

The American Right Schmoozes Hungary’s Orban

The American Right Schmoozes Hungary’s Orban  Fox News’s biggest star, Tucker Carlson, is broadcasting this week from Budapest where a political festival is happening under the aegis of Hungarian leader, Victor Orban.  As observers have noted, Orban has engaged in a gradual process of turning Hungary from a functioning EU democracy into an authoritarian state […]

Initial jobless claims continue in range, while continuing claims sharply decline

Initial jobless claims continue in range, while continuing claims sharply decline Initial jobless claims declined another 14,000 this week to 385,000, still 17,000 above their best pandemic levels of 368,000 set on June 26 and July 10. The 4 week average of claims declined by 250 to 394,000, also 9,500 above its pandemic low set […]

What Does Vaccine Effectiveness Mean?

What Does Vaccine Effectiveness Mean? by Peter Dorman  When technical specialists adopt an everyday word, they often give it a meaning that differs from its everyday use.  This can be misleading for nonspecialists, especially when little effort is made to explain the difference.  A well-known example is “significance”, which means one thing when used in […]