Both my dad and my father-in-law worked throughout their post-military careers at Y-12 in Oak Ridge. During the war, Y-12 was the site of uranium enrichment by the calutrons (K-25 was the gaseous diffusion plan, enrichment by gas chromatography). Having grown up in Oak Ridge, I’m quite familiar with its role in national security, unlike […]
“Palantir stock fell 10% for a second day on Thursday, adding to Wednesday’s 10% drop following a Washington Post report that said the Trump administration has told the Pentagon to plan for massive budget cuts over the next five years, casting doubt on a major source of the tech firm’s revenue.” I’d be happy to […]
So-called “pro-life” extremists want to define the beginning of life as the moment of conception. Setting aside the fact that both the sperm and egg are also alive so life doesn’t begin at conception, one might ponder why those who want to criminalize abortion as murder don’t similarly criminalize miscarriages as murder or assault when […]
Trump’s new VA secretary is a bigger threat to veterans’ care than Elon Musk. A ‘Middle Finger’ to Vets – The American Prospect, Suzanne Gordon and George Early In a scene that has become familiar in Washington these days, angry federal workers and concerned members of Congress gathered outside a government office to protest the […]
The 2024 election was, to some extent, a referendum on inflation. Voters were mad about higher prices, and they vented their wrath on the Democrats. Was that fair? USA TODAY asked economists to ascribe blame for the historic run of inflation, which reached a 40-year peak in mid-2022. Inflation has cooled since then, to an annual rate of […]
Wanna know why nobody wants to cut defense spending? It’s because defense dollars are spread all over the country. There’s a military installation in every state. Many companies have contracts with the DoD. So any discussion of cuts ends up with folks saying “don’t cut our piece, cut their piece.” No Congressman wants their piece […]
Housing construction declines further into recessionary territory – by New Deal democrat As promised, economic data resumed this morning, and with it my extended posts. First, the usual point that housing is a very important and leading sector of the economy, typically turning down more than a year before a recession begins. And with higher […]
Incidence of bird flu in humans, though still low, is rising. “Regular” seasonal flu is now being classified as the worst in 15 years with more US hospitalizations for flu than for COVID. So far this year 68 kids have died of seasonal flu, and the US is on track to exceed last year’s children’s […]
“Before President Donald Trump started mass layoffs of federal workers, he demonized them, arguing, despite evidence to the contrary, that most never went into the office. “As he moved to cut foreign aid, he and Elon Musk alleged widespread waste and abuse, although they offered little evidence to back up their claims and may simply […]
Some thoughts. If inflation is increasing at a lower rate than previously, the higher rate for previous years have set a higher level. There by, if salary increase is based upon the new lower inflation rate it will not equal or surpass the cost level already incurred. Indeed, unless costs stagnant or decrease, salary increases […]