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

Death to Farm Credit from Those on High

Death to Farm Credit from Those on High, Farmer and Economist, Mike Smith I’m in between fall crop planting and have to focus so I am going to run this like the rancher on the clock. Farm Credit System History  In 1916 when the Farm Credit System was established there were 6 million farms that employed around […]

The Red List

On January 6, 2021, the Honorable Mo Brooks admonished Trump’s ‘Stop The Steal’ crowd to, “… start taking names and kicking ass.” ‘Open Sesame’, Mo; just for you. Beginning with Alabama’s own little theocrat, Kay Ivey; then, Mississippi’s Tate Reeves; then, Tennessee’s Bill Lee, then Missouri’s Mike Parson; then, Texas’s Greg Abbott; then, Florida’s Ron […]

Criticizing covid policy is fine, but you need to roll up your sleeves and do some policy analysis

Libertarians criticize covid policy in broad, uncompromising terms.  These arguments are unproductive at best; at worst they are divisive and potentially destructive.  Many are just propaganda. This does not mean that criticism of the government response to covid is off limits.  The alternative to the libertarian approach is policy analysis:  evaluating specific policies on their […]

Calling Covid Vaccine “Needle Rape”

Idaho Health Board Candidate Calls COVID-19 Vaccine “Needle Rape” | Boise State Public Radio Angry Bear has its share of expressed ignorance about Covid, wearing of masks, social-distancing, and being vaccinated to mitigate the impact of Covid. One would think government officials would disavow politics and work together figting the pandemic. Not so . . […]

Coronavirus dashboard for September 10: was Labor Day indeed the peak of the Delta wave?

Coronavirus dashboard for September 10: was Labor Day indeed the peak of the Delta wave? I have been saying for some time that the Delta wave would probably peak around Labor Day. It’s not certain yet, but it is looking increasingly likely to have been the case. The Delta wave struck in both the US […]

Texas’s revolutionary law

I came across an excellent post by Infidel753 who happens to blog at a site of the same name. I believe Infidel gives a sound rendition of the issues with the Texas recent abortion law and SCOTUS court’s reaction to it. The issue of “standing” is made by Infidel in his recital of the issues. […]

Does the Brownstone Institute produce reasoned arguments or propaganda? We report, you decide.

There is good money in libertarianism.  The Brownstone Institute was recently founded by Jeffrey Tucker, a libertarian who most recently has spent his time criticizing covid lockdowns.  He just published an article criticizing Biden’s support for a vaccine mandate.  He lists five problems with Biden’s policy, but is it analysis or propaganda? Let’s take a […]

Covid testing failure and the state of American democracy

A little-noticed part of Biden’s covid address last night covered testing.  He promised to use the Defense Production Act to ramp up production of rapid tests, to make at-home tests available through retailers at cost, and to increase the availability of free pharmacy-based tests. (A few details here.) Making testing faster, cheaper, and easily accessible […]

Power and Power Brokers, Doing Right and Doing Good

Biden and the Press Commenter Dale Coberly: I ran across this in Salon newsletter,  “Your daily update from Salon” Written by Brett Bachman. “Buried deep in President Joe Biden’s Tuesday speech on America’s withdrawal from Afghanistan was a line . . . one of those uncanny truth-telling moments that Washington power brokers rarely indulge in: Biden: “This […]