Category Archives: Economics and the like

Computer Decides That The 4th Circuit Will Decide In Favor Of Individual Mandate

Posted on May 11, 2011 by Ampersand

In other news, a computer’s random selection of judges — two Obama appointees and a Clinton appointee — has pretty much guaranteed that the 4th circuit court will say that the individual mandate is constitutional. (Our judiciary is now so … Continue reading →

Posted in crossposted on TADA, Health Care and Related Issues, In the news | 45 Comments

Where the debt came from.

Posted on May 2, 2011 by Ampersand

From The Great Debt Shift, from the non-partisan Pew Charitable Trusts: In January 2001, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projected under a current law baseline that the federal government would erase its debt in 2006. By 2011, the U.S. government … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics and the like | Comments Off on Where the debt came from.

The Least of These

Posted on April 23, 2011 by Jeff Fecke

You know, I’m awfully hard on Republicans, but maybe I shouldn’t be. After all, they’re coming up with some unbelievably creative, out-of-the-box solutions to the many problems we face. Take government waste. Decadent coastal liberals like me like to point … Continue reading →

Posted in Class, poverty, labor, & related issues, Conservative zaniness, right-wingers, etc., Economics and the like | 23 Comments

Is Taxation Theft?

Posted on April 14, 2011 by Myca

There’s an argument you get a lot from either Libertarian-types or Republican economic-conservative types in general, which goes something like, “My money’s my money, and it’s not only a bad idea (in a pragmatic way) for the government to take … Continue reading →

Posted in crossposted on TADA, Economics and the like, Libertarianism | 83 Comments

Political Cartoon: Health Care and Freedom

Posted on March 30, 2011 by Ampersand

[spoiler]The scene: A woman in casual business wear addresses the reader directly. Panel one Woman: i’m TRAPPED in my job, because my kid is sick, and if i change jobs there goes my health insurance! Panel two Woman: i have … Continue reading →

Posted in Cartooning & comics, Health Care and Related Issues | 34 Comments

Political cartoon: Unemployment, Democrats vs Republicans

Posted on March 22, 2011 by Ampersand

I’m fond of the drawing in this one. Click on the cartoon to see it a bit bigger. [spoiler] The scene shows two women, one of them a bit older and dressed in black skirt, heels, and a blazer, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Cartooning & comics, crossposted on TADA, Economics and the like, Elections and politics | 39 Comments

Complacency Towards Vast, Preventable Suffering

Posted on March 18, 2011 by Ampersand

Worth echoing: David Romer writes: I had one major source of unhappiness with last week’s conference: the participants were largely silent about the dismal outlook in the advanced economies for the next several years. The current outlook for unemployment in … Continue reading →

Posted in crossposted on TADA, Economics and the like | Comments Off on Complacency Towards Vast, Preventable Suffering

Are public workers overpaid?

Posted on March 2, 2011 by Ampersand

On another thread, Robert writes: People who are paid a market wage are (naturally) somewhat resentful of people who can deploy political power to extract an above-market wage, at the expense of the people being paid market wages. If that’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Class, poverty, labor, & related issues, crossposted on TADA, Economics and the like | 79 Comments

Why Austerity is Bullshit

Posted on February 24, 2011 by Guest Writer

This is a guest post by Ben Lehman. I’ve seen the phrase “austerity” getting floated a lot in political discussions lately. In all the languages in all of human history, never has there been a word that crammed more bullshit … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics and the like | 72 Comments

Why The Rich Can Afford To Pay More Taxes

Posted on February 21, 2011 by Ampersand
Posted in Economics and the like | 17 Comments