Americans Need Jobs, Not Populism

My Comments: This post reflects my values about the role government should play in our society these day. Written by Jack Markell, it is long, congratulatory, somewhat self serving, but is so well articulated that I feel compelled to share it. Another resonance for me happens when I recall the two years I lived in …

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Why Poor People Vote for Republicans

My Comments: OK, that's too simplistic, but there is a point to be made here. Back in 2007, with the presidential election cycle in full swing, I recall seeing an old, bent and rusty pickup truck. In the front was mom, dad and 2 kids. The truck bed was full of odds and ends that …

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Strange Machinations

My Comments:There is an old adage about stock prices being a function of earnings, earnings, earnings. It's similar to the adage about real estate prices being a function of location, location and location. You and I know there are other variables, but how to identify and quantify those variables is another matter. Perhaps you've noticed …

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A Bumper Sticker World

My Comments: A conversation last week with an attorney friend again revealed a world which is far more complicated today than seemed possible just a few short years ago. An expert in family law, he said tens of thousands of new laws have entered the books across these United States in the last three decades. …

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The Left Is So Wrong On Trade

My Comments: When I first heard about the TPP (Trans-Pacific Partnership) and understood the broad outlines of the idea, I had no problem with it. Then along came Robert Reich, someone whose intellect I respect, saying it was terrible and should be scuttled. So I started looking a little closer, mindful I didn’t have access …

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David Cameron’s ‘Little England’ is a Myth

My Thoughts: As you know, I have a bias toward England and a bias away from right wing politics. The re-election of Cameron as Prime Minister at first caused me to envision woe and gloom as the next few years rolled by. It still may, but harsh reality from time to time results in a …

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Luddites Fear Humanity Will Make Short Work of Finite Wants

My Comments: A conversation yesterday with a good friend resulted from her comment about the absurdity of Obamas’ suggestion that college education should be free for all students. Mindful that some of them will not qualify, and some will not want a college education, I argued that it was a great idea, that many employers …

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Florida and Federal Money for Florida Citizens

My Comments: You may have read about this already. Or some version of it. I’m really not a fan of Rick Scott; I see him as a shill for the hospital industry who got himself elected governor. His ethics, values and focus are not consistent with mine. This was written by a Joan McCarter and …

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Public and Private Morality

My Thoughts: I read this morning that there are now about 16 candidates from the right whose names are more or less officially in play for the Presidency in 2016. One of the defining characteristics of most of them is their focus on morality, theirs, mine and ours. After reading these comments from Robert Reich, …

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Where Is the Prudence in Macroprudential Policy?

My Comments: A warning: this post is about economics and what our financial future might look like. If you can’t stomach this stuff anymore, then please don’t read any further. But you better hope that whomever sits in the White House the next go round understands it. A version of this article first appeared in …

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