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

Thanksgiving is the quintessential American holiday . . .

but not for the reasons we generally remember. – by Prof. Heather Cox – Richardson, Letters from an American The Pilgrims and the Wampanoags did indeed share a harvest celebration together at Plymouth in fall 1621, but that moment got forgotten almost immediately, overwritten by the long history of the settlers’ attacks on their Indigenous […]

The Allais Paradox

One of the first observed and best known errors people make when told probabilities is the Allais paradox.  People put too much weight on rare extreme outcomes.  This means that choices people make different choices when asked to choose between two  lotteries with the same probabilities of the same outcomes depending on how they are […]

Diagnostic Expectations vs Anchoring

For 4 decades I have been trying to deal with, what seems to me to be a contradiction between empirical results. Kahneman and Twersky note two things. One is diagnostic expectations – people over react to useful signals of membership in a group – diagnostic symptoms.  One example is that red hair is diagnostic of […]

Thanksgiving Holiday plus Some

Angry Bears I will attempt to have something up to read this Thursday (Thanksgiving). I believe Joel will be on and off also. He has not put in for vacation yet. But then we do not pay for holidays! 🙂 I am also traveling on the 3rd of December to Chicago. My time in Chicago […]

Coming to America . . . More Manufacturing

Made in America returns! Consumer-goods supplier Reckitt Benckiser is looking to respond faster to shifts in demand for over-the-counter pharmaceuticals by moving more of its manufacturing to the U.S., its largest market. Reckitt is investing $200 million into a factory in Wilson, N.C., that it acquired last month, part of an effort to rewire its supply chain […]

Just Some Reading on Various Topics in My Mail Box

– Israel Agrees to Cease-Fire With Lebanon’s Hezbollah—But What About Gaza?, Common Dreams. After months of slaughtering those not responsible, then you ask for a truce? “A cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah appeared to be within reach on Monday amid reports that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeatedly scuttled diplomatic efforts in recent months. – The Global […]

USMCA used to be “a fair deal for everybody”

Back when Trump rebranded NAFTA as “USMCE,” here’s what he said about it: “We have negotiated this new agreement based on the principle of fairness and reciprocity…. This is a terrific deal for all of us….This new deal will be the most modern, up-to-date, and balanced trade agreement in the history of our country…. With […]

Payments to Medicare Advantage Plans is More Than What is Stated

Brief commentary by Dr. Kahn who is in the thick of the discussion on Medicare Advantage Costs. Health Justice Monitor, Medicare Advantage Overpayment >$100 Billion, Jim (James G.) Kahn, MD, MPH Summary: Physicians for a National Health Program released a valuable summary of Medicare Advantage overpayments. The scope and scale is breathtaking: $100 billion annual payoff […]