To put Social Security on a sound financial footing you either need to raise taxes or cut benefits. A recent Associated Press-GfK poll indicates more Americans would raise taxes or raise the retirement age rather than cut benefits. The poll,…
Category: Other
Presidential politics’ affect on Fed? Only slight
Will the 2012 presidential election affect the Federal Reserve in any way? If so, why aren’t we talking about it? Those astute questions from a reader illustrate the craziness of contemporary U.S. politics. Over the past five years, actions by…
Bondholders get hurt when expected revenue doesn’t add up
The Vadnais Heights City Council’s decision to wash its hands of that city’s financially troubled sports center probably was correct — both legally and politically. The center is falling far short of projected revenue, and covering the shortfall would necessitate…
Ryan’s ideas about Medicare deserve serious discussion
Mitt Romney’s choice of U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan as a running mate has shaken up one of the most dismal presidential races in memory. People may not agree with the Wisconsin Republican, but in recent years he has been willing…
USDA meat buy doesn’t change market
The Obama administration’s recently announced plan to aid livestock producers suffering from the drought by having the U.S. Department of Agriculture buy up some $170 million of meat is election-year window-dressing that will do little to help farmers. But neither…
Is Wall Street setting itself up for a crash?
After every debacle, one can identify a point at which it should have been obvious to all that things were getting crazy. We are at such a point with high-frequency trading in financial markets. In the 1630s, when one tulip…
Culture plays role in wealth of nations
On his recent foreign tour Mitt Romney learned a basic lesson in diplomacy: There are many things that may be true, but it is not always tactful to state them openly. But what is a virtue in international relations can…
Economic lessons abound in ethanol mandate debate
Politics may make strange bedfellows, but economics can split up long-established relationships. That is evident in the split within the farm bloc this week as several livestock-producer organizations joined in petitioning the government for a waiver from the EPA mandate…
Eurozone crisis would play out differently here
The eurozone continues to limp along, but a financial crisis and sharp recession there remain the greatest threat to U.S. prosperity outside of our own fiscal follies. Yet while many Americans are sure Europe has done something stupid, they really…
Will taxes or bans on soft drinks make a dent in nation’s midsection?
Obesity is an enormous national health problem. Many people, me included, weigh much more than is good for their health. One outcome is that, as a nation, we spend more on health care than we would if people ate less…