Matthew Yglesias floated a claim today about the nature of the modern economy that I have seen pop up from time to time: That’s not just to make the banal point that someone like a Jeffrey Immelt does in fact do work, it’s to highlight the point that the concept of a class struggle between… Continue reading Corporate executives are not just highly paid workers
Author: Matt Bruenig
Regulations are not the problem, but an easy mistake to make
So, small businesses do not actually rank government regulations as that big of a problem for them. They are way more concerned about the state of the economy, despite what conservatives often say. With that said, there are still some who do complain about regulations, and I am sure some of them are genuine in… Continue reading Regulations are not the problem, but an easy mistake to make
How do we fix the deficit? End the wars, tax the rich! — And do some other things too!
Along with taxes, discussions around the deficit are made far more confusing than they really need to be. If we want to fix the long-term deficit, there are of course hundreds of different solutions. Despite having the best solutions on the deficit, those on the left are constantly depicted as totally delusional and non-responsive to… Continue reading How do we fix the deficit? End the wars, tax the rich! — And do some other things too!
Pricing out poor people is not a solution
It is a sign of the neoliberal times that these days even liberals spend a lot of their time advocating fiddling with prices. Liberals who want to curb carbon pollution advocate increasing the price of that pollution either through a Cap and Trade system or a straight carbon tax. Liberals who want to decrease traffic… Continue reading Pricing out poor people is not a solution
How useful is the poverty line?
The Census released its supplemental poverty measurement today. The details are numerous, but the headline is that under the SPM, the number of impoverished people climbs to 49.1 million, 2.5 million more than the conventional poverty measurement. Under the SPM measurement — which takes into account government benefits, child support, and other factors — the… Continue reading How useful is the poverty line?