Divining the decision rules that guide Trump’s actions.
Recent Items
Sunday, July 27, 2025
Satyajit Das: Parsing President Trump’s Real Agenda
Topics: Economic fundamentals, Free markets and their discontents, Globalization, Guest Post, Politics
Posted by Yves Smith at 5:55 am | 33 Comments »
Adams Asks Feds to Probe Conditions at Designed-to-Evade Supervision ICE Lockup in Manhattan
ICE lawbreaking continues yet pressure on NYC Mayor Adams so far has elicited only a wet noodle lashing.
Topics: Globalization, Guest Post, Legal, Politics, Ridiculously obvious scams, Social policy, Social values
Posted by Yves Smith at 3:34 am | 11 Comments »
The Incredible Impact of Ozzy Osbourne, from Black Sabbath to Ozzfest to 30 Years of Retirement Tours
We depart from our usual programming to commemorate the death of Ozzy Osbourne.
Topics: Curiousities, Guest Post, Social values
Posted by Yves Smith at 3:00 am | 38 Comments »
Coffee Break: Gaza as Dress Rehearsal for War With China
The U.S. military legal establishment has big plans to use Gaza as a model for future large-scale conflicts, including with China.
Topics: China, Coffee Break, Middle East
Posted by Nat Wilson Turner at 2:00 pm | 51 Comments »
How Can the Democrats Win Back the Working Class? Economic Populism
A new report finds that championing progressive economic policies can reverse the exodus of working class voters from the Democratic party.
Topics: Free markets and their discontents, Guest Post, Income disparity, Politics, Social policy, Social values, The destruction of the middle class
Posted by Yves Smith at 9:55 am | 41 Comments »
Links 7/23/2025
Topics: Links
Posted by Yves Smith at 6:55 am | 155 Comments »
“How Much Longer Can We Trust Our Economic Statistics?”
Trump budget whackage will further degrade the quality of official statistics. And that really does matter.
Topics: Banana republic, Dubious statistics, Economic fundamentals, Investment management, Investment outlook, Politics, Ridiculously obvious scams, The dismal science
Posted by Yves Smith at 6:53 am | 28 Comments »
Abundance of Accelerationism: Democrat Rebrand Promises to Keep Foot on the Breakdown Gas
If Elon Musk were to really start his own political party, would that signal that the donor class no longer has any use for the Democrats?
Topics: Global warming, Income disparity, Infrastructure, Macroeconomic policy, Politics, Privatization, Ridiculously obvious scams, Social policy, Social values, Surveillance state, Technology and innovation
Posted by Conor Gallagher at 6:00 am | 44 Comments »
What the World Can Learn from Uruguay as the Global Housing Crisis Deepens
Cooperative housing has been a big success in building affordable housing in Uruguray. But can this model be exported to the US?
Topics: Free markets and their discontents, Guest Post, Income disparity, Politics, Real estate, Social policy, Social values, The destruction of the middle class
Posted by Yves Smith at 3:55 am | 8 Comments »
Coffee Break: Armed Madhouse – Poison Gas
Before our current age of nuclear war anxiety, there was widespread concern about an earlier terrifying weapon of mass destruction: poison gas. I will describe the history of war gases in the context of our current concerns about atomic war. It is an ugly topic, but examining it may provide some hope for a way […]
Topics: Coffee Break, Guest Post
Posted by Haig Hovaness at 2:00 pm | 32 Comments »
Australia & Japan Are Seemingly Having Second Thoughts About the De Facto Asian NATO
Japan and Australia are finally questioning US exploitation. But what can they do about it?
Topics: Australia, China, Doomsday scenarios, Europe, Globalization, Guest Post, Japan, Politics
Posted by Yves Smith at 9:55 am | 36 Comments »
Links 7/22/2025
Topics: Links
Posted by Yves Smith at 6:55 am | 147 Comments »
Brussels’ Latest Destructive Project, Culling the Euro Area’s Banks, Hits a Snag
The governments of Italy and Spain are doing everything they can to obstruct EU-supported bank mergers from taking place within their borders.
Topics: Guest Post
Posted by Nick Corbishley at 6:45 am | 17 Comments »
Africa’s Minerals Are Being Bartered for Security: Why It’s a Bad Idea
A minerals-for-security deal among the DRC, Rwanda and the US is as bad as the Ukraine “raw earths” security commitments.
Topics: Africa, Commodities, Doomsday scenarios, Guest Post, Politics, Privatization, Ridiculously obvious scams
Posted by Yves Smith at 5:55 am | 6 Comments »
The Fight for Hearts and Minds: Christian Churches Filling Void Created by Social Service Cuts, With Some Also Hard-Selling Far Right Political Messages
As safety nets shred, some Christian churches provide key services to the poor while others use the desperation to build political power
Topics: Banana republic, Guest Post, Income disparity, Politics, Privatization, Social policy, Social values, The destruction of the middle class
Posted by Yves Smith at 1:28 am | 23 Comments »