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

What natural disasters like Sandy teach us about taxes and government

Left out in the wake of the election and material, Linda’s post is still relevant as we continue to clean up, repair and replace damage done by Hurricane Sandy and the Nor-easter.. I would like to see more information on plans for future ‘unique’ storms and ways to handle some of the unique problems encountered […]

Romney shows he’s a "know-it-all" who has no real ideas at all

(Dan here… This one is still relevant.  I let it hang in drafts by mistake.) by Linda Beale Romney shows he’s a “know-it-all” who has no real ideas at all. I missed almost all of the first debate but watched most of this second one.  My quick sum-up of the action was the Obama was […]

Starve the state; support traditional families (only)

by Linda Beale The right-wing’s “breadwinner conservatism”–starve the state; support traditional families (only) Many of us who think about tax and economic policy have been confounded by the tendency of lower-middle-class families to vote Republican, which means they are ultimately voting against their own economic interests for a party that wants all the benefits of […]

The GOP, rape and abortion, and the place of God in political discourse

by Linda Beale The GOP, rape and abortion, and the place of God in political discourse Remember GOP candidate Akin and his comments about no-pregnancies-from-legitimate-rape, suggesting somehow that most rapes are not legitimate and are maybe sought after by the one raped as well as by the rapist?  Akin revealed an incredible lack of understanding […]

Another Court Strikes Down DOMA

by Linda Beale Another Court Strikes Down DOMA The Second Circuit ruled on Thursday on the estate tax case involving the legality of DOMA–Windsor v. United States (or in the long form–Windsor, executor of the Estate of Spyer, v. United States).  Readers may recall this as a case in which a group of members of […]

Romney’s "Binders full of women" comment

by Linda Beale Romney’s “Binders full of women” commenteditor’s note:  this is a political commentary and not a tax discussion. When Romney was asked what he could do about the inequity in women’s compensation, he didn’t answer the question.  He tried to turn it to his advantage by telling a story of how he ended […]

Romer’s deficit reduction suggestions worth a read

by Linda Beale Romer’s deficit reduction suggestions worth a read Christina Romer’s recent piece in the New York Times is worth reading.  See C.D. Romer, Cutting the Deficit, with Compassion, New York Times at BU5 (Sept. 9, 2012). Now, I generally have found Romer too willing to advocate austerity economics and too unwilling to support […]

Romney and Private Equity’s Questionable Schemes for Paying Very Little Tax

by Linda Beale Romney and Private Equity’s Questionable Schemes for Paying Very Little Tax Presumably any American who wants to be informed is aware that GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney‘s claim to business acumen resides in his experience at a private equity firm that made much of its money by ramping up debt at purchased […]

Not on Tax (or only indirectly so): GOPer Akin’s "legitimate rape" comment

by Linda Beale Not on Tax (or only indirectly so): GOPer Akin’s “legitimate rape” As most of you have heard by now, the Missouri Republican nominee for Senate, current House Rep. Todd Akin, in a Sunday interview with KTVI-TV, justifying his opposition to any abortion ever, even in the case of rape, made the following […]

Romryanomics–prosperity for the well-off fueled by austerity for the rest

by Linda Beale Romryanomics–prosperity for the well-off fueled by austerity for the rest I’ve put off writing about stilted robo-Romney’s choice of the perpetual-smily-Ryan as veep about as long as I can, I suppose.  So let me talk about it in broad terms in this post.  In the next posts, I’ll discuss more methodically the […]