Category Archives: Economics and the like

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

On Cato, Libertarians, Freedom, And Social Democracy

Posted on March 8, 2012 by Ampersand

So the libertarian Cato Institute may or may not be subject to an unwanted takeover by the Koch family. It’s widely expected that if the Koches take Cato over, they’ll turn Cato into a GOP cheerleader. (If that happens, it … Continue reading →

Posted in Class, poverty, labor, & related issues, crossposted on TADA, Economics and the like, Libertarianism | 43 Comments

Why Immigration Hasn’t Hurt Native Wages In California

Posted on March 5, 2012 by Ampersand

The Economist’s Wil Wilkinson reports on new research from California (the state with the most immigrants). If it were impossible to tell immigrants and native workers apart — had they no differences that matter to the job market — an … Continue reading →

Posted in crossposted on TADA, Economics and the like, Immigration, Migrant Rights, etc | 10 Comments

Political cartoon: See Sue Run

Posted on February 8, 2012 by Ampersand

[spoiler] PANEL 1 See Sue (Illustration of small white girl in pigtails running. This is Sue.) See Sue run. PANEL 2 See Sue run to public school. (Illustration of Sue running towards brick building.) Go, Sue, go! PANEL 3 See … Continue reading →

Posted in Cartooning & comics, crossposted on TADA, Economics and the like | 147 Comments

I’m Sure This Won’t Come Back to Bite Mitt Romney

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Jeff Fecke

Mitt really shouldn’t talk about things. He tends to do poorly. “I’m not concerned about the very poor. We have a safety net there,” Romney told CNN. “If it needs repair, I’ll fix it. I’m not concerned about the very … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics and the like, Elections and politics | 33 Comments

Health care and non-compete agreements

Posted on January 11, 2012 by Guest Writer

[Written by Kay Olson, and crossposted from The Gimp Parade with Kay’s kind permission]. Two years ago this week I got caught up in a legal dispute that briefly threatened my life. Obviously, I’m still alive, but a version of … Continue reading →

Posted in Disabled Rights & Issues, Health Care and Related Issues | 9 Comments

Pain Medication Comments That Annoy Me

Posted on December 29, 2011 by Ampersand

The Agitator is essential reading, one of the best political blogs anywhere. Still, Radley Balko sometimes uncritically parrots libertarian tropes. Government Evil! Liberals Stupid! For instance, today he posted this libertarian boilerplate: Alternet publishes article calling for government monitoring of … Continue reading →

Posted in crossposted on TADA, Health Care and Related Issues, Whatever | 24 Comments

When businesspeople take credit for creating jobs, it is like squirrels taking credit for creating evolution

Posted on December 2, 2011 by Ampersand

In Bloomburg, venture capitalist and 1%er Nick Hanauer argues that our popular discourse misunderstands where jobs come from. A long excerpt: As an entrepreneur and venture capitalist, I’ve started or helped get off the ground dozens of companies in industries … Continue reading →

Posted in crossposted on TADA, Economics and the like | 10 Comments