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

Investing in People soon to be the One – Percenters

November 25, 2024 By Heather Cox Richardson Letters from an American Today, President Joe Biden laid out very clearly the argument behind the economic policies his administration has put into place. He writes . . . “When I took office, the pandemic was raging and the economy was reeling. From Day One, I was determined […]

How Units of Account “Came About”

– by Steve Roth Originally posted at Wealth Economics This post is in response to a very brief Bluesky exchange I had with Dan Rohde and DT Cochrane about the origins of “The Dollar” (specifically U.S.). It led me to read about the U.S. Coinage Act of 1792. Here’s the Wiki, and the Act itself — which I can’t believe […]

Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, & Orders

Monthly Full Report on Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, & Orders – Press Release, Census.Gov, November 4, 2025. Briefly – New orders for manufactured goods in September, down four of the last five months, decreased $2.8 billion or 0.5 percent to $584.2 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau reported today. This followed a 0.8 percent August decrease. – […]

Manufacturing and Trade Inventories and Sales: September 2024

Manufacturing and Trade Inventories and Sales: September 2024, Census.Gov Friday, November 15, 2024 Sales The combined value of distributive trade sales and manufacturers’ shipments for September is adjusted for seasonal and trading day differences but not for price changes. It was estimated at $1,881.2 billion, up 0.3 percent (±0.2 percent) from August 2024 and was […]

New Deal democrats Weekly Indicators November 18 – 22

 – by New Deal democrat My “Weekly Indicators” post is up at Seeking Alpha. Briefly . . . With the hurricane-induced weakness past, the short term forecast has improved to very positive. At the same time, while a few series have whipsawed the coincident nowcast to a neutral status. Importantly, consumer spending still remains strong. As […]

The Reason Dems Lost this Election? Layoffs and Prices.

I believe it is more than just GM sticking it to Labor. Increasing food prices. Each major automotive company laid off thousands. Some examples of sticking to the population. Eggs in particular saw an increase. Packaging was made smaller. Some examples: – Fritos Scoops: “Party Size” bags used to be 18 ounces, but are now 15.5 […]

Extending Trumps 2017 Tax Cuts

Trumps 2017 Tax Break Extension chart and explanation . . . Sources: CBO (for most provisions), *JCT( R&E provision), **CRFB (Interest provision) New estimates from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) put a price tag of nearly $5 trillion on extending all the Trump-GOP tax law, which is mostly scheduled to expire at the end of 2025. That is more […]

Being atypical is “not representative of a type, group, or class”

Dean Baker: “Story telling attracts attention and sells newspapers.” I was reading at another site which was making the argument of Medicare Advantage plans being less costly than Traditional Medicare. It cites a truism that Medicare Advantage offers Part D and Supplemental in its package while Traditional Medicare does not. That is true. However, Medicare […]