As they so often do, by promoting unrealisitc models, economists have become part of problem rather than the solution.
Tuesday, September 30, 2025
Why Public Schools’ Best Days Could Be Ahead of Us
Some urban public schools, like the ones in St. Louis, are about to regain substantial local control after budget crises made them wards of the state (government). Will these cities be able to take advantage of this opportunity?
AI, Drones, Empathy, Alienation, and the Gig Economy
Why operating drones for the military and moderating content for Facebook are both really bad gigs.
2:00PM Water Cooler 6/24/2019
Today’s Water Cooler: Temporarily open thread.
Book Review: Stephanie Jones-Rogers’ “They Were Her Property”
This important scholarly work paints a vivid portrait of 19th century America’s most significant and devastating system of economic exchange.
Former Shale Gas CEO Says Fracking Revolution Has Been ‘A Disaster’ For Drillers, Investors
“Excluding capital, the big eight basin producers have destroyed on average 80 percent of the value of their companies since the beginning of the shale revolution,”
The Sham of Shareholder Capitalism
The mythology of shareholder capitalism does not stand up to scrutiny.
Victory Gardens in the World Wars (and in the Neoliberal Era)
A random walk through Victory Garden posters, with commentary, and a recommendation that the government mobilize to recreate them.
Wolf Richter: Bring on Higher Oil Prices: They’ll Boost the US Economy. Powell Sees it Too. A New Experience for the US
The plunge in oil prices since August has caused the oil-and-gas sector to get skittish with capital expenditures this year, and Powell picked up on that. Investment in the US shale sector has a big impact on the real economy.
1 In 6 Insured Hospital Patients Get A Surprise Bill For Out-Of-Network Care
Surprise bills don’t just come from the emergency room. Often, patients will pick an in-network facility and see a provider who works there but isn’t employed by the hospital.
Trade Wars in the Global Value Chain Era
Why trade wars are more costly than conventional wisdom would have you believe now that manufacturing to a large degree depends on global value chains.
2:00PM Water Cooler 6/21/2019
Today’s Water Cooler: Biden v. Booker, Biden v. Sanders v. Warren, Trump and the evangelicals, reparations, party building, housing, PMI, Tesla, concentration, New York climate law, cannabis cultivation, the NHS, surprise billing, AHIP, the Internet of Sh*t
