Fearless commentary on finance, economics, politics and power

Today’s Water Cooler: Harris, Gillibrand, AOC on Finance Commitee, Brennan Russia walkback?, organizing Philly, housing, mortages, lithium scandal, Blue Apron, WeWork and Softbank, Elsevier, law enforcement for profit, LA teachers strike, “toxic masculinity”

Snails to the rescue!

Despite May’s epic Brexit loss, she’s still barely changed her course of action.

Debunking another “worker shortage” story.

Another set of shutdown costs.

Today’s Water Cooler: NAFTA won’t fund the wall, China trade negotiations, Wendy’s at the White House, Russian meddling, Bernie Bros, Obama’s presidency, manufacturing, purchasing prices, robot cars, online gambling, Apple, Bird, Blue Apron, Uber, Antarctic ice, Frederick Douglass

New York’s City Council has scheduled a hearing Thursday to debate a measure to enshrine a right to disconnect – which would bar firms from requiring workers to check e-mail or other electronic communications outside the normal workday unless their contracts specify otherwise.

Why the Green New Deal can’t deliver on its promises.

The Trump Administration is out to weaken payday lender regulations so as to allow the industry to put borrowers on a debt treadmill that leads almost inevitably to bankruptcy.

The FBI is openly setting out to make and break political leaders, undermining what we have left of a functioning democracy.

Readers have expressed virtually no interest in the first two scheduled meetups of this year, and we have gotten the message.

Today’s Water Cooler; Fortnite, Southeast Asian trade, Sanders 2020, Democrats and the heartland, soybeans, Tidal’s faked streams, Bird, AWS and MongoDB, RSS, fiber, market moves, Los Angeles teachers strike, gig economy, Marie Kondo, countering misinformation

How CalPERS gave access to its sensitive member database to a company it barely knew, Votem Corp., with no contractual protection whatsoever. That’s like giving the keys to your house to someone you just met.