This recent interview of Barack Obama in the New York Times is a must read, it shows how deeply Obama has thought about the issues. I obviously do not agree with much of his policy proposals, but his understanding of many of the issues is impressive, especially in a President.
Archive for April, 2009
Apr29th2009
“In fact, when I look back at almost every “environmentally friendly” alternative product I’ve seen being widely touted as a cost-free way to lower our footprint, held back only by the indecent vermin at “industry” who don’t care about the environment, I notice a common theme: the replacement good has really really sucked compared to […]
Apr28th2009
Is Government Spending As Good As Anybody Else’s?
Published by in Economics, Fiscal Stimulus and General. 0 CommentsSpecifically, at creating employment? Many liberal economists, including UC Berkeley’s Brad DeLong, say yes. For the counter argument, see this post by Mario Rizzo, professor of economics at NYU.
He writes:
So when DeLong, among others, says that government spending is as good as private in restoring employment, he is speaking against the whole thrust of the […]
Apr27th2009
Juan Williams On Democrats Canceling DC Vouchers
Published by in Education, Hispanics (Minority Issues) and Vouchers. 0 CommentsHe writes:
The cause of my upset is watching the key civil rights issue of this generation — improving big city public school education — get tossed overboard by political gamesmanship. If there is one goal that deserves to be held above day-to-day partisanship and pettiness of ordinary politics it is the effort to end the […]
Apr24th2009
…even though I disagree with some of what he writes.
Read this post, where Steve Sailer, in a Talking Points Memo discussion of Andrew Gelman’s political book, “Red State, Blue State”, explains why the once Republican California has become a solid Democratic voting state while the once moderate Texas has become a solid Republican voting state. […]
Apr23rd2009
Link via Greg Mankiw:
For the second time in a week, the Obama administration has discarded a major campaign pledge on international economic policy. In its decision last week not to name China a currency manipulator, and now to forswear renegotiation of NAFTA, the administration avoided two potentially costly mistakes.
These are campaign pledges that I hoped […]
Apr22nd2009
“Nominated for New Hampshire’s Teacher of the Year, Hampton Academy teacher Christina Hamilton received a layoff notice — by cell phone — the same week. Kevin Fleming, grievance chairman of the teachers union, tells the Portsmouth Herald, “Even though she is recognized as a candidate for Teacher of the Year, they have to go on […]
Apr16th2009
“But is it really so absurd for ordinary Americans to be furious that Uncle Sam now promises to run up $9.3 trillion in debt during the next decade - an unfathomable sum that will inevitably lead to much higher taxes or higher inflation or both? Is it small-minded to oppose corporate welfare for automakers, banks, […]
Apr15th2009
Are huge:
In a remarkable illustration of the power of lobbying in Washington, a study released last week found that a single tax break in 2004 earned companies $220 for every dollar they spent on the issue — a 22,000 percent rate of return on their investment.
The study by researchers at the University of Kansas […]
Apr14th2009
Quote Of The Day
Published by in (modern day) Liberalism, Education, Hispanics (Minority Issues) and Vouchers. 0 Comments“A week after 200 low-income Washington, D.C. families were offered $7,500 vouchers, Education Secretary Arne Duncan canceled the scholarships. No new children will start at private schools in the fall; those already attending will lose voucher aid in another year, unless Congress reconsiders. As the Washington Post editorializes, this makes it easier for congressional opponents […]
Apr13th2009
“According to Forbes, Wal-Mart was the most generous corporation in America in 2007 (probably the world too), giving away $301 million in cash gifts to the Children’s Miracle Network, Feeding America, The Salvation Army, the American Red Cross, the United Way of America, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.” — Quote via Mark Perry, who has […]
Apr10th2009
This Ted talk video by Mike Rowe, the host of “Dirty Jobs,” is both educational and entertaining. It gives a side of work that is often ignored in todays society.
A must watch video.
Apr9th2009
Megan McArdle alerts us to an upcoming crisis:
According to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, which regulates and insures pensions, the total deficit in private plans covering about 34 million workers was a little over 10 billion as of September 2008. That’s almost certainly multiplied quite a bit since then. But the current underfunding in public […]
Apr6th2009
“The claim that the crisis was due to an insufficient level of regulation is not convincing. For example, commercial banks have been more regulated than most other financial institutions, yet commercial banks performed no better than other classes of financial institutions. At the other extreme, hedge funds have been the least regulated, and on the […]
Apr3rd2009
Though long, well worth the time for those interested in the origins of the financial crisis:
Click Here To Watch The Video
Its given by economist Alan Blinder, whose book, Hard Heads, Soft Hearts: Tough-minded Economics For A Just Society, is one of my favorite economic books of all.
Apr2nd2009
“President Obama’s proposal to limit the tax deductibility of charitable contributions would effectively transfer more than $7 billion a year from the nation’s charitable institutions to the federal government. But the high-income taxpayers affected by the rule change are likely to cut their charitable giving by as much as the increase in their tax bills, […]
