Category Archives: Economics and the like

Cartoon: Talking About The Deficit

Posted on November 3, 2012 by Ampersand

[spoiler]Cartoon depicts a woman and her child, sitting on the edge of the curb. The child is sleeping leaning against its mother. In front of them, a homemade cardboard sign reads “Unemployed Hungry.” On the sidewalk behind the pair, two … Continue reading →

Posted in Cartooning & comics, Class, poverty, labor, & related issues, Economics and the like | 19 Comments

The Minimum Wage, Global Warming, and Expert Consensus

Posted on October 3, 2012 by Ampersand

Via Bleeding Heart Libertarians, I read Daniel B. Klein and Stewart Dompe’s admirable article “Reasons for Supporting the Minimum Wage: Asking Signatories of the ‘Raise the Minimum Wage’ Statement.” Klein, an economist who opposes the minimum wage, wanted to understand … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics and the like, Environmental issues, Minimum Wage | 22 Comments

Mitt Romney Reveals His Contempt For Half Of America

Posted on September 17, 2012 by Ampersand

Well, 47% of America, to be accurate. This is a video of Romney, at what he thought was a private, unrecorded fundraiser: There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right, … Continue reading →

Posted in Class, poverty, labor, & related issues, Economics and the like, Elections and politics, In the news | 67 Comments

Two great long-form political cartoons

Posted on August 18, 2012 by Ampersand

I really like long-form political cartoons, which we don’t see much of, I think because it’s hard to find a market to sell them to. But here are two great ones I came across this week: “Straw Feminists In The … Continue reading →

Posted in Anti-feminists and their pals, Comics I Like, Economics and the like | 6 Comments

From Forbes.com: “The Bomb Buried in Obamacare Explodes Today – Hallelujah!” by Rick Ungar

Posted on July 2, 2012 by Richard Jeffrey Newman

An interesting article. I wonder what people think. Here’s an excerpt: [T]he provision of the law…called the medical loss ratio…requires health insurance companies to spend 80% of the consumers’ premium dollars they collect—85% for large group insurers—on actual medical care … Continue reading →

Posted in Health Care and Related Issues | 14 Comments

Supreme Court Upholds Affordable Care Act

Posted on June 28, 2012 by Ampersand

Still not much time for posting, but I do want to point out that — much to my surprise — the Supreme Court has upheld the Affordable Care Act, with Roberts voting with the four relatively liberal Justices, and Kennedy … Continue reading →

Posted in Health Care and Related Issues, In the news, Supreme Court Issues | 26 Comments

I Said, “Pretend You’ve Got No Money.” She Just Laughed and Said “Oh, You’re So Funny.”

Posted on April 24, 2012 by Jeff Fecke

The Romneys are not like you and me. [Ann] Romney alluded to the fact that not all women can stay at home saying, “I love the fact that there are women out there who don’t have a choice and they must … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics and the like, Elections and politics | 46 Comments

Obamacare discussion thread

Posted on March 27, 2012 by Ampersand

I feel kind of bad that I haven’t posted anything about the ongoing Supreme Court trial. Judging from today’s oral arguments, it’s going to be a 5/4 decision, but which way it goes depends on Justice Kennedy. Most folks seem … Continue reading →

Posted in Health Care and Related Issues, In the news, Supreme Court Issues | 1 Comment

Partisanship vs. Thought on Gas Prices

Posted on March 26, 2012 by Ampersand

Lovely graph from the Washington Post: Although the partisans on both sides look like dolts here, obviously on this issue Democratic hypocrites outnumber Republican hypocrites. (This may be a case where Republican skepticism of the Federal government’s ability to do … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics and the like, Elections and politics, In the news | 32 Comments

More on freedom, birth control and employer coercion

Posted on March 22, 2012 by Ampersand

In comments, Sebastian writes: You’d have to squint pretty hard to get the idea that freedom from state coercion is a general organizing principle of progressivism […] See for example recent progressive discussions about the state forcing employers to provide … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics and the like, Health Care and Related Issues, Libertarianism | 35 Comments