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

Student Loan Forgiveness Mostly Does Not Exist

Some stories about Student Loans. In the past, I have written about student loans. If in the end, you can pay them off with little delay, you are golden. The problems arise when a student can not find a decent paying job. It becomes a matter of what do I have for dinner as there […]

The “real,” wage adjusted price of gas isn’t at privation levels yet

– by New Deal democrat Back in the “before” days, as in January, before the Iran war, I wrote about how low gas prices were actually a tailwind for the economy. Because since the start of the Millennium over 25 years ago, they had only been so low compared with average hourly wages on only 3 […]

Will Trump try to block oil exports from the United States?

I don’t know if he has the legal authority to do this, but does it even matter with Trump?  Domestic prices will rise if 1) foreign supplies fall and 2) domestic production is diverted to fill demand overseas.  Trump could keep domestic supplies from being diverted and we could still use world markets to fill […]

Gasoline Goes Galactic, Diesel Spikes

Gasoline Goes Galactic: Prices Jump, Diesel Spikes, and the White House Feels the Burn Thank you President Trump! This is about a week old. It still has relevance to what this fool is doing to the US Economy. The national may yet slip into a recession. “Oil Prices Post Biggest Monthly Surge in History,” OilPrice.com. […]

Will the Democratic Party Have the Courage to Lead?

“J.P. McJefferson Thoughts“ J.P. McJefferson As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary, the condition of its governing institutions presents a paradox. The American experiment is not collapsing. It is not even failing in the conventional sense. It is, instead, stalled—caught in a pattern of predictable conflict and diminishing returns that sustains conflict without producing […]

Fluoridated water doesn’t make you stupid

When I was growing up in East Tennessee, there were some who claimed that water fluoridation was a communist plot. If that’s the case, then God is a communist because in many parts of the world, water is naturally fluoridated. Indeed, it was the recognition that natural fluoridation was associated with fewer dental caries that […]

Looking at Some Economic Indicators

After zigging upward last week, interest rates zagged downward – but not as much – this week, enough to change the ratings on some interest rate sensitive indicators, like mortgages. And consumers continue to spend, despite all the shocks and sluggishness in things like the labor market in the past 15 months. Partial of “Weekly […]

Celebration of Spring

Easter, and the Rites of Spring Whatever else you think of them, those early Christians were brilliant marketers. They took the ancient pagan festival of Saturnalia and turned it into Christmas, and then they gave us Easter, which is really a lightly disguised celebration of spring, something virtually every civilization has. Remember, they aren’t celebrating […]

Sunday Easter Holiday

Angry Bear writers, commenters, readers, critics, etc.. Have a safe Easter holiday with family, friends, good food, lots of fun with children if you have any, and eat some good food. Special family times on such holidays. Will be back on Monday to write, present, and talk again. Be safe. Happy Easter . . .