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

April 8, 1865, U.S. Grant Having a Hard Night

April 8, 1865, Letters from an American, Prof. Heather Cox-Richardson On April 8, 1865, General Ulysses S. Grant was having a hard night.  His army had been harrying Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s for days, and Grant knew it was only a question of time before Lee had to surrender. The people in the Virginia […]

Trusting statistics

I had a Facebook discussion yesterday about statistics. At one point, my interlocutor posted “You should know better than anyone that statistics can be manipulated to actually show the opposite of what is real.” Well, just to be clear, that’s not a problem with statistics, that’s a problem of motivated reasoning, which is not a […]

The Postal Service consolidates its network: Modeling five metros

Steve Hutkins and former N.C. Postmaster Mark Jamison have been following the issues with the USPS, its reorganization, and the attacks on it by politicians and commercial interests. This particular post is detailing parts of the reorganization of it. As you will read, the plan is to establish distribution centers where Mail Delivery Personnel would […]

Response Would’ve Been ‘Vastly Different’ if the Rioters Were Black

I was no general, field grade officer, or even an officer in 1970. Just a three-strip Sergeant in my 3rd year stationed at Lejeune drinking the water and bathing in it. Someone had a brilliant idea we should be trained in riot control since Camp Lejeune was not far from Washington D.C. Some elements out […]

Black Earth

Just finished reading “Black Earth: The Holocaust as history and warning” by Timothy Snyder. It is a detailed account of the Holocaust, as well as an effort to abstract lessons from this history for our time. Like his book “Bloodlands,” Snyder’s “Black Earth” makes for painful reading. As the grandson of a Ukrainian Jew and […]

Medicare Advantage uses Algorithms to block care for Seniors

Kip Sullivan has been writing about the issues with Medicare Advantage. I have joined with Kip in bringing the issues of Medicare Advantage to the forefront. Angry Bear has featured Kip and I have added to the dialogue. This next commentary details how Healthcare Insurance, mostly Medicare Advantage has been using artificial intelligence in the […]

Macron Bypasses Parliament With ‘Nuclear Option’ on Retirement Age Hike

Dale Coberly talking about the French President Macron forcing retirement reform and what could result if US Social Security is paid for by taxes on the rich in income. Macron Bypasses Parliament With ‘Nuclear Option’ on Retirement Age Hike, commondreams.org, Jessica Corbett [The following is copied from article cited in link, with some editing by […]