Senator Flake’s prepared comments announcing his resignation from the Senate (from CNN): Mr. President, I rise today to address a matter that has been much on my mind, at a moment when it seems that our democracy is more defined by our discord and our dysfunction than it is by our values and our principles. […]
I have been wondering why so many seem to be indifferent to the plight of the unemployed. Sometimes, the attitude is not so much indifference, but rather irritation that the poor are exempted from the burdens of society (see e.g., [0]).
Here is a plot of the unemployment rate and the alternative unemployment rate including marginally attached and part-time workers.
In light of the provision to sell off power plants in Wisconsin under no-bid contracts, this photo caught my eye:
Following up on recent posts ([1], [2], [3], [4], [5] [6]) Here’s another take on the prospects for resolving global imbalances, from Olivier Blanchard and Gian Maria Milesi Ferretti, “Global Imbalances: In Midstream?” Staff Position Note 09/29 (Dec. 22, 2009):
IV.B. Lower Global Imbalances in the Future
What will happen in the future depends on how long the factors we just listed will be in play [oil price decline, asset price busts, increase in home bias, the hit to durable consumption and investment goods demand].
Below is reproduced the IMF World Economic Outlook‘s October 2009 forecast for current account balances.
Your retirement nest egg might have lost 40% of its value since this summer and 10% the last 2 weeks. What should you do? Here’s the advice I’ve been giving to friends who ask, as well as what I’ve been doing with my own portfolio.
With all the excitement in financial markets, I almost missed this story on the bailout for automakers.
I keep trying to warn my friends in the Federal Reserve about the tsunami that’s coming their way.