Unions and survival

“We’re willing to take an extra step here.  ‘Concesssions,’ I used to cringe at that word.  But now, why hide from it? That’s what we did.” 
United Auto Workers President Ron Gettelfinger
That’s momentous, and to me ultimately a good thing.  Understand, I’m generally pro-union, almost reflexively.  The idea that a mass of workers should be able to [...]

The latest on the auto bailout talks

This is a fascinating take by Steven Pearlstein on the proposals put forth by the Big Three this week.
The way Pearlstein frames it you can almost envision three men hoping to woo a woman on an old-style, behind-the-curtain television dating game.
GM is saying, “I’d do anything for you.  I’ve already bought your wedding ring and told my family [...]

To walk and chew gum at the same time

I hope it’s lazy language, not lazy reporting, that this Wall Street Journal article puts forth on Barack Obama’s second press conference this week.  Obama introduced his choices for director and deputy director of his Office of Management and Budget, saying, “When we are facing both rising deficits and a sinking economy, budget reform is not an [...]

Trade-offs

The question is whether increased economic viability in, say, Mali, is worth the increased pollution it would bring.  The thinking is that the development would bring up health care far faster than the pollution would drag down people’s health. 
All kinds of other practical matters — such as to whom the real [...]

OK. I’m convinced. (Larry Summers edition)

Brad DeLong on why Summers is right for “high federal office,” perhaps even the Treasury Department, which he previously helmed at the tail end of the Clinton Administration.
Summers and other intellectually robust people like him filling the ranks of government?  And then given rein to do their jobs?  That would be “change.” Barack Obama knows better than to [...]

This is too true

A strong entry on the global sham economy from Kai Chang.  No surprise, Zuky is a serious site.

We love statistics

Context is missing too often from straightforward stories.
Like here, where it’s pointed out that Barack Obama’s fund-raising in the first half of October showed a significant decline from the pace in September, when he set a record by pulling in $150 million.
So now he’s on pace for about $70 million in the month.  Which would [...]

The old gray lady better be ready for cat food

Damn.  I know the print journalism business was bad but I didn’t know that the most famous daily newspaper in the country, The New York Times, was in severe financial trouble.  (Hat tip to The Big Lead.) I knew about its stake in The Boston Globe but somehow didn’t realize that the Times also owns almost a fifth of [...]

The problem with healthcare proposals

Barack Obama and John McCain have starkly different plans for addressing the cost of and access to health insurance. 
Obama’s focus is on increasing access but he’s trying not to buck the current system very much.   It’s highly incremental and will probably take a while before much progress is seen with regards to 50 million Americans or [...]

The work of today…

…is to come up with a wise plan for responding to the economic crisis we’re in.  It’s no wonder that so few people feel equipped to address the issues, though there’s a lot to the common eye that’s visibly askew.
How many people know right off the bat the difference between liquidity and solvency?