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

Getting the Facts Right on Social Security…CRFB responds

Dan here  .  .  .  this post is a direct response to Dale Coberly’s post. Both posts are long and complicated, so I and Marc expect further posts to tackle particular policy issues. Getting the Facts Right on Social Security cross posted with Committee on Responsible Federal Budget The late Senator Moynihan once said that […]

New series on Social Security: Angry Bear and Committee on Responsible Federal Budget

This post is simply a short note to let readers know that a series of posts and topical threads will be published over the next weeks by staff at the Committee on Responsible Federal Budget and contributors to Angry Bear blog and several outside authors in our network. Marc Goldwein,  Policy Director for the Committee […]

OH NOES! SOCIAL SECURITY IS BROKE AGAIN

by Dale Coberly OH NOES! SOCIAL SECURITY IS BROKE AGAIN AND WE’RE ALL GOING TO DIE! BECAUSE…  BECAUSE… BECAUSE WE’RE ALL GOING TO LIVE FOREVER A couple of public spirited citizens have taken some of their Own Time to warn us that Social Security is (taken from last January) “worse than you think.” They take […]

Why Will Healthcare Insurance be Cheaper in Florida with the PPACA???

The fact of the matter is; healthcare insurance will not be cheaper in some places. Why it will not be so in Florida, I will get into later. If you remember from 2010, the progressive state of Florida was the first to launch a suit in Federal court claiming the PPACA was unconstitutional. Eventually and […]

Sunday Reads

The 1% are Still Stealing Our Homes Hat Tip Crooks and Liars Diane Sweet Following the bank’s instructions, Laura and her partner missed three months of their mortgage payments to qualify for a loan modification. But instead of working with the family, Bank of America put the home in foreclosure, using the highly controversial process […]

SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT ON SOCIAL SECURITY

by Dale Coberly SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT ON SOCIAL SECURITY HOW THE “COMMITTEE FOR A RESPONSIBLE FEDERAL BUDGET” LIES TO YOU A group that calls itself “Committee For A Responsible Federal Budget” wrote what it claims to be “Setting the Record Straight on Social Security.”  The article needs to be responded to at some length, […]

Taxes And Income Distribution: The Way It Was And The Way It Is

Via Econospeak Barkley Rosser ponders taxes and distribution: Taxes And Income Distribution: The Way It Was And The Way It Is Got invited on to the local TV station today to discuss income distribution thanks to the recent statements about the matter by President Obama and Pope Francis, only to upset the local anchorman by telling […]

Sunday Reads

Senator Elizabeth Warren introduces bill to stop credit checks in job application process “A bad credit rating is far more often the result of unexpected medical costs, unemployment, economic downturns, or other bad breaks than it is a reflection on an individual’s character or abilities,” Senator Warren said. “Families have not fully recovered from the […]

HOW MUCH INTEREST DOES SOCIAL SECURITY PAY?

By Dale Coberly HOW MUCH INTEREST DOES SOCIAL SECURITY PAY? A reader asked what interest does Social Security pay on your “investment”?  I think it is important to realize that this is not the important question about Social Security.  Social Security is an insurance program and it doesn’t make any more sense to talk about […]

Minimum wage 20 years ago

Lifted from comments by Fred C. Dobbs at Economist View: Supersize My Wage http://nyti.ms/1cOvtvS NYT Magazine – December 17, 2013 – ANNIE LOWREY About 20 years ago, in the midst of a recession, New Jersey decided to boost its minimum wage to $5.05 an hour from $4.25. Its neighbor to the west, Pennsylvania, chose not […]