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

Vladimir Mau Has Been Arrested

Vladimir Mau Has Been Arrested, Econospeak, Barkley Rosser  Vladimir who? I appreciate that most readers have never heard of this individual. But this is the sign of a major new shift in the situation in Russia. To make clear why this is important: until quite recently Vladimir Mau was the top economic advisor of V.V. […]

July 5, 2022, Letters from an American

I subscribe to this Substack and found Professor Heather Cox Richardson take on America to be interesting. From time to time, I contribute. What I found most interesting is people knew of the coming attack on January 6. They knew the dates it would happen. And they said nothing. How is this ok? I spent […]

Polluting the Air We Breathe

“‘Polluting the air we breathe’: Mechanic sentenced for selling thousands of devices that allowed trucks to bypass emissions controls” – MarketWatch, Lukas Albert Another story about pollution. According to prosecutors, Matthew Geouge raked in $10 million for selling the devices which made trucks produce hundreds of times more pollution. But, they go faster and leave […]

There is no ‘compromise’ to end the issue of abortion

There is no ‘compromise’ to end the issue of abortion – but there may be a ‘least worst’ modus vivendi  – by New Deal democrat I have written before that the typical divide between “economic” and “social” issues isn’t quite correct. Most “social” issues, it turns out, are really “moral” issues, where some people are […]

Independence Day 2022

Independence Day, 2022  – by New Deal democrat The opening paragraph of the Declaration of Independence: “ When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to […]

Cooking the Planet by Limiting EPA’s Power to write Regulations and Rules

SCOTUS is moving to limit the power of congressionally legislated Agencies to write Regulations and Rules as delegated by Acts of Congress. The decision forces actions normally taken by empowered legislative Agencies back into Congress where they can be challenged. SCOTUS is picking on the EPA, restricting various regulations and rules it dislikes using the […]

A Pure Exercise of Power to Reduce Women’s Freedom and Equality

“Ending Roe is a pure exercise of Republican power, wielded to reduce women’s freedom and equality” – Los Angeles Times (latimes.com), Erwin Chemerinsky Freedom and equality have expanded enormously over the course of American history, which makes the ending of a constitutional right virtually unprecedented. In Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the court overruled […]

A Break On The JCPOA Iran Nuclear Deal?

A Break On The JCPOA Iran Nuclear Deal?  Maybe. It is now reported that “talks are to resume,” although most observers are not optimistic. But then today there is a report of a shakeup in the Iranian Revolutionary Guards hierarchy who seem to control the most serious of these things. Head of their intel, Taeb, […]

An abortion polling Rorschach test

What does this make you think? Option 1:  This is a moral outrage! Option 2:  We need to figure out how to win elections! Politics is not a morality play, folks!  If you think this is an outrage, spend your time figuring out how to win elections.  And winning elections may require messaging that does […]