For years I’ve wondered about the Republican leadership in Congress. Not just the obvious—what they’re doing and what their motivations might be for doing it—but also about why we generally have heard so little from them about it. Generally, when … Continue reading →
The Fed has announced a raise in the interest rate for the first time since 2006. The new target will go from 0 percent to 0.25 percent to 0.25 percent to 0.5 percent. Most members expect the new rate to … Continue reading →
Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Dr. Priscilla Chan have announced a decision they’ve made on the birth of the daughter: Zuckerberg announced that his family will be giving away 99 percent of their shares in Facebook, which currently totals … Continue reading →
The subject of H-1B visas* came up during last Wednesday’s Republican debate, most particularly regarding Rubio, who advocates an expansion of the program with some restrictions. So I decided to try to find out the truth about what’s involved and … Continue reading →
I’ve heard it opined that the reason the GOP capitulated on the budget is that they want Hillary Clinton to be elected, because they prefer being the opposition party to having to accomplish anything. But I don’t think that’s the … Continue reading →
Is this the wave of the future?: Central bank policymakers had believed they had run out of room to support their respective economies, with their interest rates held close to the floor. …Cut rates too deeply, [they thought], and savers … Continue reading →
Here’s Megan McArdle on how the housing bubble and resultant crisis happened: In fact, according to a new paper by Fernando Ferreira and Joseph Gyourko, subprime loans accounted for only a bare majority of defaults at the beginning of the … Continue reading →
…the other billionaires: But Trump’s rise shows billionaires don’t have to constrain themselves anymore. They can cut out the middleman. It’s the art of the deal on the campaign trail. And if you’re a billionaire with business sense, a flair … Continue reading →
The jitters continue: The Dow Jones Industrial Average briefly fell more than 1000 points””its biggest ever one-day point decline on an intraday basis””before recovering to trade 194 points lower, or 1.3%, at 16265. The S&P 500 fell 1.4%, while the … Continue reading →
…this. From the video at the link: “They’re scared that maybe there’s no place to make money. If the stock market’s not going to make you money, where do you make it now?” When I was younger and looking towards … Continue reading →
Michael Totten has an excellent article on Vietnam today. The country is a capitalist (or at least mostly-capitalist or semi-capitalist) success story and Ho Chi Minh’s worst nightmare: Hanoi’s economy looks and feels entirely unregulated; the city bursts with activity. … Continue reading →
A quote from Lenin that’s been running through my head, post Iran deal: “The Capitalists will sell us the rope with which we will hang them.” Several commenters here have pointed out the ramifications of the Iran deal, particularly to … Continue reading →