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

Review of “McNamara at war”

I registered for the draft as a high school senior during the Vietnam war. At the time, you registered at 18, your lottery number was assigned at 19, and you were drafted at 20 if your number was low enough. In the event (a) my number was high enough that I wouldn’t get drafted and […]

“signs of both imminent recession and ‘green shoots’”

“Housing permits, starts, and construction: signs of both imminent recession and ‘green shoots’”  – by New Deal democrat This morning’s important data on housing construction contained two apparently contradictory trends: on the one hand, it continues to be – even more intensely – consistent with an imminent or ongoing recesssion. On the other hand, it suggests […]

What Has the World Received in Return for U.S. Efforts?

Summing it up as to what our current president is doing to make the United States and the rest of the world safer and economically better. Nothing, just worse, “Double Standard at the Top, When One Tremor Ripples Across the Globe, & The Quiet Crisis in America’s Living Rooms,” Kareem Takes on the News Summary:  […]

Trump’s latest threat is suicide for the US economy

Now, Trump is threatening to double down on his Iran disaster. “President Donald J. Trump threatened Friday to destroy Iran’s major oil terminal on Kharg Island if Tehran continued to obstruct shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.” Trump fancies himself as a deal-maker. Any deal-maker who can bankrupt a casino is a fool. This latest […]

End some of the Massive Tax Breaks Trump gave out in the One Big Ugly Bill to Fund Healthcare

The only solutions being offered up for healthcare in America are political, favoring industry and healthcare. The issue being this form of healthcare is too expensive. Time to take a step back. Merrill Goozner @ GoozNews, “A health care plan for the mid-terms” Americans say health care affordability is their number one pocketbook concern. In […]

Understanding the larger context for small, discrete events is essential to protecting our rights

Civil Discourse The Fate of the First Amendment – Joyce Vance The Defense Department announced is barring press photographers from the briefings it holds on the war in Iran. Why? According to “two people familiar with the decision who spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear of retaliation,” it’s because the press has published photos […]

It’s not just the gasoline

The de facto closing of the Strait of Hormuz resulting from Trump’s little war impacts supply chains besides transportation. “Farmers in the U.S. and Canada, who were already worried about prospects for another year of low profits or losses, now could have spring planting disrupted as they struggle to find fertilizer, ‌and prices for any […]