I frequently read a debate about whether, when assessing anti covid 19 performance, one should look at deaths per capita or deaths on days since 1000 deaths. Like everything involving Americans, this has become a pro v contra Trump debate — clearly he wants deaths per capita (and the absolute number of tests performed). The […]

Coronavirus dashboard for May 4: new infections, deaths continue slow decline Here is the update through yesterday (May 3). As usual, significant developments are in italics. The bottom line is the same as several days ago: trends in new infections, deaths, and in testing have all turned positive – if not positive enough. But the good […]

by New Deal democrat Weekly Indicators for April 27 – May 1 at Seeking Alpha My Weekly Indicators post is up at Seeking Alpha. As with the Great Recession, once the economy has gone over a cliff, the next question is, where is the bottom of the cliff? At least on a weekly basis, the data […]

(Dan here…Great comments for this post at Econospeak) Planet of the Humans: A De-Growth Manifesto Planet of the Humans, directed by Jeff Gibbs but featuring Michael Moore as its “presenter”, has been viewed by almost five and a half million people since it popped up on YouTube last month.  In case you haven’t heard, it’s […]

SCOTUS decided 8-1 in favor of health insurance companies and coops in MAINE COMMUNITY HEALTH OPTIONS v. UNITED STATES decision, April 27, 2020 to be paid. I have been following this issue since 2015 and SCOTUS finally ruled on Republican’s (Sessions, Upton, Kingston) blockage of the Risk Corridor Program funding. A bit of history to […]

Here Trisha Greenhalgh, an actual expert, writes what I have been trying to write. In a Twitter thread. Please click the link. Two key tweets But the principle of waiting for the definitive RCT [randomized controlled Trial] before taking action should not be seen as inviolable, or as always defining good science. On the contrary, […]

Donald Trump Goes Absolutely Bonkers Over China (Last Thursday) President Trump erupted with a series of demands and threats against China, focusing on various claims about its role in the current pandemic.  I have here noted some issues with China’s conduct, but Trump makes it completely impossible that there will be any of the much-needed […]

Coronavirus dashboard for May 2: good news, but still primarily due to NY Here is the update through yesterday (May 1). As usual, significant developments are in italics. The trends in new infections, deaths, and in testing have all turned positive – if not positive enough. But the good news remains primarily a NY story. I […]

by Ken Melvin Judges, Ideologues, Dogmatics, and Bad Decisions A judge should be wise enough to look to the possible consequences of his or her decisions. A judge should be wise enough to change his or her mind.  A judge should generally accord these qualities to the decisions of his or her predecessors. And, given […]