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

Review of Beyond the wall: A history of East Germany by Katja Hoyer

I first met my friend Gunter at a scientific meeting on the Greek Island of Crete in 1986. He was from East Germany. I knew his published work at the time, and when I shared my unpublished data, he agreed to send me some Drosophila stocks that would advance my research. At the meeting, he […]

State Supreme Court takes to Task the U.S. Supreme Court

As you read this Slate article, this is something I was also thinking about. How did SCOTUS arrive at its decision and what was the basis or history supporting its decision? SCOTUS was interpreting what they thought it should be. Thomas was telling judges to study the history of gun control before they arrive at […]

A national unity ticket?

Democracy and world peace have had a very bad week. The special counsel’s unprofessional, partisan decision has put Biden’s age and mental status front and center in the presidential contest.  Most commentators agree that it is up to President Biden to dispel doubts about his fitness, primarily by making himself more available to interviewers and […]

Why I changed my mind and think Trump should be thrown off the ballot

January 6 was an insurrection, rebellion against the election of a new president. Congressmen/women and Senators fled for their lives. No help came from city police or elsewhere to quell the insurrection. There is no question about what it was. Calling it a riot is an attempt to make it less then what it was, […]

February 9, 2024, Letters from an American

Why is it that Democrats always pick the wrong guy? Yes, he delivered an honest, nonpolitical, and legal determination of Biden’s guilt or innocence as assigned to do. No, he is not entitled to go forward with his personal BS assessment of Biden a man he obviously distains. February 9, 2024, Letters from an American, […]

trump’s TCJA Made the Tax System, Tax Season More Burdensome

In Angry Bear’s commentary Looking at the Trump 2017 Tax Breaks, we examined exactly what the TCJA did for citizens. By the end of 2025, the TCJA would add to the deficit an ~$2.2 trillion. If extended, we can expect another $1.5 trillion. Special exempts were written into the bill so those (business interests) who […]

Immigration and the politics of compromise

One of my themes here has been that the Biden administration and congressional Democrats should actively and publicly seek compromise with Republicans.  The events this week illustrate the logic of compromise clearly.  The perceived crisis on the southern border was probably the biggest single threat to Biden’s re-election, or at least the biggest threat that […]