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

private equity is destroying the labors of love

Successful industrialists financial Wall Street bankers whose business practices were often are considered ruthless and unethical, capturing portions of the market, and bleeding it dry. Not much left of the hollowed-out companies other than a name and the empty buildings they once occupied. Good commentary on Simon and Schuster being bought by KKR. Is Robber […]

While Medicaid’s enrollment purge plows on . . .

While Medicaid’s enrollment purge plows on . . . GoozNew, Merril Gooz A few weeks ago, I critiqued the inequities that would inevitably result from a bare-bones universal insurance plan offered by two economists, which I dubbed it “Medicare-for-all lite.” There was one part of their plan that merits serious consideration: Automatic enrollment for everyone in some […]

Initial claims travelin’ man edition: still below cautionary levels

Initial claims travelin’ man edition: still below cautionary levels  – by New Deal democrat Initial claims were 250,000 last week. The 4 week average increased to 234,250. Continuing claims with a one week delay were 1.716 million. Most importantly, YoY the4 week moving average is up 9.5%: This is well below the 12.5% YoY increase […]

Industrial production improves, with help from vehicle production: travelin’ man edition

Industrial production improves, with help from vehicle production: travelin’ man edition  – by New Deal democrat Industrial production increased 1.0% in July. Its manufacturing component increased 0.5%. Total production is still down -0.6% from its peak last autumn, while manufacturing is down -01.%: These are not recessionary numbers.  It’s worth emphasizing that the unspooling of […]

Free Lunches, Portfolio Allocation, and Equity Premia: Part 1

TANSTAAFL. There Ain’t No Such Thing as a Free Lunch. Someone pays, somehow. The standard textbook example is pilots who refill their plane at a gas station that offers them a “free” steak dinner while charging five cents a gallon more than another station at the same airport. The pilot and co-pilot get $50 dinners […]

Open Thread August 19, 2023 “Appeals court strikes down Utah oil railroad approval”

“The statement received pushback from environmentalists concerned that constructing new infrastructure to transport more fossil fuels will allow more oil to be extracted and burned, contributing to climate change. “Appeals court strikes down Utah oil railroad approval, siding with environmentalists,” msn.com. Additionally, communities in neighboring Colorado including Eagle County and the city of Glenwood Springs […]

The last domino still refuses to fall: Travelin’ Man edition

In housing construction, the last domino still refuses to fall: Travelin’ Man edition  – by New Deal democrat [First, a blogging note: I will be traveling for the next week and a half. I’ll keep posting the data, but the posts are likely to be brief, and may be a day late. On days when there […]

Non-fungible tokens

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) first came to my attention just a couple years ago. Apparently, anything could be an NFT. Per Investopedia: “Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are assets that have been tokenized via a blockchain. They are assigned unique identification codes and metadata that distinguish them from other tokens. “NFTs can be traded and exchanged for money, […]

July retail sales: gas and vehicle sales continue to dominate the trend

July retail sales: gas and vehicle sales continue to dominate the trend  – by New Deal democrat As always, real retail sales tell us a great deal about what is happening in the consumer economy. July continued the recent trend since gas prices started declining over a year ago. Nominally retail sales increased 0.7%. Since […]