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

Massachusetts senate election

There is a light snow at the moment. While the snow and icy roads are cleared here from yesterday, we shall see what kind of weather unfolds throughout the day. The phone has been ringing steadily over the week end and Monday, with volunteer or robo calls from both senate candidates Martha Coakley and Scott […]

Too much wealth?

by Linda Beale Too much wealth? more dialogue on the issue Several days ago, Jim Maule ran a post on the disproportionate number of wealthy Congress members–44% are millionaires, compared to about 1% of the population at large. A Tax Policy Determination Clue (Jan. 6, 2010). I picked that post up in the context of […]

AARP sent me this message

Did you know that next week the Senate will vote on an amendment that could mean the future of Social Security and Medicare would be decided for us without an open and public debate? I just told my senators to oppose the Conrad-Gregg amendment, which if passed would give a special commission the power to […]

More on freshwater economics

by Linda Beale I just discovered (via Mark Thoma’s Economist’s View) an economics blog by Maxine Udall (self-styled “girl economist”–which just goes to show how much our image of economists is one of hirsuted males forging through the marketplace…oops, I meander) that may be worth a read. I’ll add it to my “progressive sites of […]

Two BRICs: India vs. Brazil

by Rebecca Wilder I started research on India to further explore economic prospects after reading and (excellent) FT article on necessary labor reform. In doing so, I now see a (possibly) much flatter economic growth trajectory for Brazil. Here is an excerpt from the article (last paragraph): Over the years, numerous academic studies and official […]

Tax Gimmicks then and now–sunsetting tax cuts; temporary tax hikes

by Linda Beale When the Republicans wanted to enact huge tax cuts for individuals and businesses in 2001 and 2003 (as well asadditional cuts in other years), they realized that it would result in long-term deficits of unforgiving amounts. So they scaled back their package with a gimmick–a sunsetting tax provision that, like Cinderella’s fairy […]