(Modern) History Quiz “You have to wonder what it will take for serious people to realize that punishing the populace for the bankers’ sins is worse than a crime; it’s a mistake.” Who said the above, about what? A. President Obama, about TARP, zero percent interest rates, and other Wall Street bailouts.B. FDR about investment...Read More
Taking Away the “Spoiler Factor”“Ranked Choice” voting, which I strongly support (“Ranked Choice Voice: Cure for What Ails Us?”), picked up a big endorsement today: from NYT columnist Thomas Friedman. Here’s Friedman’s case for what he calls “alternative voting” (also referred to as “instant run-off voting”): One reason independent, third-party, centrist candidates can’t get elected...Read More
Good Schools = Buyer Demand (What’s New?) Local San Jose Realtors are running ads in newspapers in China and India telling potential immigrants to “buy a home” in [San Jose’s] Lynbrook school district because it produced “two Intel science winners.” –Thomas Friedman, “America’s Real Dream Team“; The New York Times (3/21/2010) Nice piece by Tom...Read More
The Search for New Currencies Although G.D.P. numbers still aren’t perfect ” they are subject to periodic revisions, for example ” the basic problem has been largely solved. –Robert Shiller, “A Way to Share in a Nation’s Growth“; The New York Times (12/26/2009) In a piece in today’s New York Times, Robert Shiller — that...Read More
“What You Get For . . . [A Whole Lot Less]” If you want a window on the national housing market the last 3 years or so, all you have to do is look at The New York Times’ weekly real estate feature, “Great Homes and Destinations.” The feature’s signature headline, “What You Get For...Read More
Fixing the Financial System If . . taxpayer funds end up providing windfalls to financial operators instead of fixing what needs to be fixed, we might not have the money to go back and do it right. And the lesson of Ireland is that you really, really don’t want to put yourself in a position...Read More
