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

Economic year end summary for 2025: housing, jobs, & real income stagnant, while spending powers forward

 – by New Deal democrat There is no new noteworthy data today; and the ISM manufacturing index, normally released on the first workday of each month, won’t be released until Monday, so today is an ideal time to check in on the state of the economy in general, and of housing in particular, at the […]

Disease Outbreaks are Occurring When and Where They Should Not

Intro . . . Pulling from the CDC and University of Minnesota for details on what appears to be a Measles outbreak in the United States. A recent outbreak occurring in multiple states include Arizona where I reside today. The outbreak in Arizona was or is still growing. Sixty-five percent of the cases are with […]

What the market will bear

I started college at the dawning of the age of cloning. Recombinant DNA technology represented the transition from descriptive molecular biology to genetic engineering. By the time I started teaching medical students, the genes mutated in terrible diseases like cystic fibrosis, Tay-Sachs, hemophilia and Fragile X were being cloned. There was always an obligatory paragraph […]

Robotaxis to the rescue?

My junior high instrumental music teacher and band director was a spinster who never owned a car. She took taxis to get around our small town. At the time, it seemed odd. Now that I’m 70 years old, it looks like my future. The promises of robotaxis (I’m looking at you, Elon) have so far […]

Why I don’t own an EV

I live in Rhode Island. Ca. 90% of electricity in Rhode Island is generated by natural gas. So if you re-charge your EV in Rhode Island, you’re fueling your car with natural gas. Some folks have pointed out that EVs are about twice as efficient as ICE vehicles. That is, they waste about half the […]

COVID vaccines are still safe

I was in the vaccine arm of the Moderna mRNA vaccine phase III trial. I’ve had a total of eight jabs since August 2020 and I’m still fine. Of course, I’m just an anecdote. But by now, hundreds of millions have had the mRNA vaccines worldwide, with few if any proven side effects beyond mild […]

Happy [sic] New Year!

Since Trump’s return to the White House in January 2025, the editorials have been filled with claims that the United States is slipping into authoritarianism. While this possibility is greeted with cheers by right-wing extremists, it is a source of dire concern for liberals and for moderates like me. As Niels Bohr (and Yogi Berra) […]

How Did New Years Celebrations Begin and What Did They or It Mean?

New Year’s – Traditions, Resolutions & Date. As taken from the HISTORY site. The Earliest Recorded Festivities How did celebrations In honor of a new year’s arrival date start? Records date back some 4,000 years to ancient Babylon. For the Babylonians, the first new moon following the vernal equinox (the day in late March with […]