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

Protestors Let Lose by the Courts

Another brief read. This time as a partial take from TPM’s, “Chicago Protestors Reel After Fending Off Federal Charges,” TPM Josh Kovensky piece. Again, referencing my experience in 1971. 4th Bn 10th Marines trained for riot control in Washington D.C. No special loaded weapons. Just stock M-14s with no rounds passed out to us. Probable […]

Caribbean Boat Strike

An interesting column by The Washington Post‘s Alex Horton and Ellen Nakashima. “Hegseth order on first Caribbean boat strike, officials say: “Kill them all.” The longer the U.S. surveillance aircraft followed the boat, the more confident intelligence analysts watching from command centers became that the 11 people on board were ferrying drugs. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave […]

Health Insurance Premium Spikes in Another Month as Enhancements Set to Expire

Abbreviated look at the impact of discontinuance of ACA subsidies in 2025 if Congress does not extend them. Keep in mind the discontinuance of these subsidies will help to balance out the tax breaks President Trump and Republicans have planned for upper income brackets. Much needed by Republicans and Tru_p.. “Health Insurance Premium Spikes Imminent […]

New Deal democrat’s Weekly Indicators for November 24 – 28

 – by New Deal democrat My “Weekly Indicators” post is up at Seeking Alpha. In the aggregate, consumer spending remains robust. On the other hand, as I pointed out yesterday with my aggregation of the various regional Fed reports on manufacturing and services, the largest sector of the US economy appears to be stagnant or even shrinking […]

Collective guilt

Apparently, the National Guard shooter in DC was an Afghan refugee. Now the Trump Administration has got its panties in a twist, calling it an act of “terrorism” and blaming all Afghan refugees. “Afghan refugees in Massachusetts who fled the Taliban in recent years fear they won’t be able to stay in the country after […]

Regional Fed manufacturing and services indexes for November 2025

“Regional Fed manufacturing and services indexes for November show manufacturing rebound, continued rampant price pressures, and stagnant employment”  – by New Deal democrat Although the federal government has resumed reporting economic data, it is spotty and woefully stale, from August and September. As a result, the two big sources for current data remain the regional Feds […]

IQ. So what?

I don’t know if my IQ was tested. Needless to say, I don’t know what my IQ is. I do know that I was awarded a BA in microbiology with honors at the age of 22, a PhD in genetics at the age of 27, a tenure track assistant professor of biochemistry and molecular biology […]

Money, Power and the Traders who Barter the Earth’s Resources

Book Review: The World for Sale The one-handed economist Javier Blas and Jack Farchy (B&F) published this book in 2022, and I decided to read it after hearing them discuss it on a podcast. The book focuses on commodity traders “who barter the Earth’s resources” as it says in the subtitle. On the one hand, these […]

The housing market continues to be recessionary: repeat home sales edition

– by New Deal democrat Note: there was a good advance manufacturers’ new orders report for September this morning. I’m going to save discussing it until Friday, when I dissect the regional Fed reports, which are now all in through November. Neither building permits and starts, nor new residential sales, were updated this morning, which means […]