Today’s Water Cooler: #COVID19, new national poll, Biden steps on another rake, Sanders, Pelosi and SALT, vote-by-mail, consumer confidence, manufacturing, oil glut, air cargo, Nextdoor, ventilators, medieval lead pollution, gardening, nasal swabs, Darwin Awards for social distancing, Gannet lay-offs, podcasts slow, private equity and hospitals, Egyptian baking
Saturday, February 7, 2026
Alejandro Nadal, a Giant in Global Conservation
A tribute to Alejandro Nadal, who fought for elephants and against wildlife trafficking and environmenal degredation.
Developing a Vaccine for Covid-19. What To Expect?
A quick look at the state of play for a Covid-19 vaccine.
Firing of Whistleblowing Emergency Room Doctor Ming Lin By Blackstone-Owned TeamHealth Demonstrates Outsized Role of Private Equity in Hospital Staffing
Blackstone’s TeamHealth, a big perp in the scam called “surprise billing,” retaliated against a doctor who criticized unsafe Covid-19 practices.
Brace Yourselves: The US Is Setting Up a Ghastly “Natural Experiment”
The US may be about to be exceptional…in not a good way.
Bills are Due and Payable: Workplace Strikes and Rent Strikes
A round-up of strike activity, with advice for the Sanders campaign.
2:00PM Water Cooler 3/30/2020
Today’s Water Cooler: #COVID19 chart, new national poll, Biden, Cuomo, Sanders, a reconfigured election season, manufacturing, warehouses and private equity, digital grocery shopping, Covidien, Arctic ozone hole, California #COVID19 efforts, “Tiger King,” Yale to New Haven: “Drop Dead,” tilde sites
Having It Easy in the Beginning, Tough in the End: How My Dad Predicted the Decline of America
This should be a time for a genuinely new approach, one fit for a world of rising disruption and disaster, one that would define a new, more democratic, less bellicose America.
Radical Imagination: Imagining How the World of Finance Really Works
Michael Hudson rings the changes on some of his favorite themes: the logic of ancient debt jubilees. and the role of finance in contemporary rent extraction.
Tax Justice and Modern Monetary Theory – A Guide
Does Modern Monetary Theory take tax justice for granted?
The CARES Act: Stimulus and Unemployment Checks
Who gets a check? How much will the check be? How long will the check take to arrive? When will the checks stop?
Why COVID-19 Will Strain the Safety Net for Homeless Vets to the Breaking Point
While the COVID-19 crisis is unprecedented, the slapdash response underscores how fragile the safety net for America’s homeless really is.
