Political Economy category archive
The Privatization Scam, There’s No Money To Be Made from the Public Good Dept. 0
David and Richard Wolff discuss the economic reasons why capitalism failed to protect the public from the pandemic.
Sacrificial Lambs 0
At the Idaho State Journal, Jim Jones explains.
Taxed beyond Endurance 0
I paid more in federal income tax last year than Donald Trump paid in the last decade.
Hell, I paid more in state income tax last year–oh, never mind.
Of course, the cultists will be in no way discombobulated, because Dear Leader is always right and never wrong.
Follow the Money 0
Thom and Dr. Richard Wolff discuss the economic underpinnings of racial and ethnic discrimination and police brutality.
The Businesses of America Are Giving America the Businesses 0
Mike Ellerbrock points to a number for factors to explain what he dubs “the lopsided evolution of income, wealth, and power during the last four decades.” Follow the link for a detailed discussion of each one.
- Stakeholders vs Shareholders.
- Workers’ Wages.
- Workplace Justice.
- Corporate Welfare.
- Market Concentration.
- Civic Leadership.
The Stock Market Is Not the Economy 0
The Bonddad Blog has an informative article explaining why the stock market can do well while the overall economy is hurting.
The short version is that the stocks of certain large tech companies have boomed because of their usefulness in a work-and-study-from-home-during-the-pandemic environment. In contrast, the portions of the economy that affect and are peopled by everyday persons (that is, not what is sometimes referred to as the “investor class”) are suffering, along with the persons who live in and depend on them.
The long version is at the link.
Afterthought:
I need a new tube for one of my bicycle tires, so, late last week, I headed out to my local bike shop, where I’ve been trading since I moved to these parts, only to find that it was gone. The two stores on either side of it in the little shopping center were also closed.
Persons who can afford boats to parade in are not worrying about catching up with last month’s rent because the restaurant or store they used to work in has closed.
Stray Question 0
PoliticalProf raises an interesting point.
Malpracticing Medicine without a License 0
Talya Miron-Shatz is fed up with politicians making medical decisions. A snippet:
“American Exceptionalism” 0
The United States has most recently demonstrated its exceptionalism by its abject failure to contain COVID-19.
I can’t summarize or excerpt his piece and do it justice. Just go read it for yourself.
Bombshells
0
At the Idaho State Journal, Mike Murphy posits that recent “bombshell” books about Donald Trump, such as those by Mary Trump and John Bolton, are hardly bombshells by any definition, maybe not even firecrackers or squibs.
He suggests that anyone who has followed Donald Trump’s career already knows what Donald Trump is.
A snippet (emphasis added):
Which is really sort of a head scratcher since one definition of the term bombshell is “an overwhelming surprise, a shocking revelation.” Since none of the claims describing the president’s behavior in any of the books come as the teeniest bit of a surprise to informed individuals, labeling any of the books as a bombshell is classic hyperbole.
(Brain skip fixed.)
Tales from the Front 0
A caller tells Thom of her experiences at the demonstrations in Portland, Oregon. (It should come as no surprise that her story differs from the picture painted by Attorney-General Lowering the Barr.)