Home » Posts tagged 'News' (Page 59)

Tag Archives: News

Failing “Facts”

Posted on by | 17 Comments

As I prepare for a seminar on economics for today’s progressive, this particular post has come back to haunt me.  It’s a bit subtle but hurts like a sledgehammer if you think about it.  The bizzy whirl of my life as I prepare to announce my plans requires a repeat – and this one is standing out.  Enjoy!

Back in the 1950s, people who studied complex things like economies felt they were making real progress. The general belief was that by understanding how it all worked we could even things out and usher in a new era of continuous prosperity that would benefit everyone.

Some of the underlying “facts” that were identified at this time have been accepted as simple truths. Growth is always good, and economic growth always flows to workers, making their lives better generation by generation. There’s only one problem lately – some of the “facts” appear to not be as true as they used to be. That means that the underpinnings of modern economic theory are all being questioned and, perhaps, if we don’t keep our eyes open the new era of prosperity will be far more elusive than anyone thought.

Continue reading →

Too Much Credit?

Posted on by | 14 Comments

If you’re like most people, you probably think that you can never have too much access to credit. After all, you never know what might go horribly wrong or when an opportunity to really follow your dream might come up. A little scratch ready in the background might be the difference between the good life and something much less.

Then again, a lot of credit has a corrosive effect. In a world saturated with borrowing everything is judged against the expected return if the money was simply loaned out at market rates. It seems reasonable that where a little credit is a good thing a lot of credit, defining everything in the world, is the biggest enemy of both long-term thinking and a society looking to maximize happiness and human potential.

Logic says that where a little credit is good a lot could be bad, meaning there is an optimal point. Where is that? Where are we with respect to a good level of credit? It turns out that train left the station a very long time ago – and this may explain a lot of the problems in this economy.

Continue reading →

Tempus Fugit

Posted on by | 8 Comments

On Sunday we go through the ritual of changing over to Standard Time.  Spring water, fall down, as the saying goes – or something like that. It always seems perfectly ridiculous to think that somehow we “save” an hour when all we’re really doing is moving it around.

It’s even worse if you have friends or colleagues in Europe, which left daylight time last week.  This week and this week only there were six hours between St Paul and Frankfurt instead of the usual seven.  Next week it’s back to normal.

All this messing with the clocks only proves how artificial the whole idea of time is.  Perhaps we’re better off with one time across the globe.

Continue reading →

Paint the Map Blue!

Posted on by | 15 Comments

If you’re a Democrat, there’s a good chance that you’ve cackled with glee over the turmoil in the Republican Party. Between the presidential campaign running so far off script that inside fave Bush is polling in fourth at 8% and the chaos in the House there’s a lot of schadenfreude to be had.

Then again, it also might be distracting us Democrats from our own problems which, while not as public and nasty, are still rather bad. There’s nothing wrong with the party that can’t be fixed in the next year but time is running a bit short. Those of us who care about the future of our party, our movement, have a responsibility to kill the party over Republican misfortune and start calling out our own shortcomings.

Continue reading →

Credit Cards – Still Failing?

Posted on by | 12 Comments

Have you received your new chip-protected credit card yet? The new cards are supposed to eliminate fraud by requiring a PIN, stored in the chip, at every purchase. As Barataria reported last year, the credit card system has to be considered completely compromised after a large number of security breeches at nearly every retailer. The largest ones are reported, but we it is wise to consider every use of the traditional “swipe” credit cards which are easily duplicated once the numbers and names are stolen.

That’s why the new cards were mandated to be in use by 1 October. But the system is plagued by delays at all ends – and may not be as secure as promised. That’s a big problem for merchants who, as of the deadline, assume responsibility for a lot of credit card fraud.

Continue reading →