It is hard to know what to do when short-run solutions to problems lead to more severe difficulties. When such longer-run complications materialize, Monday-morning quarterbacks often take cheap shots at short-sighted decisions. But at the time, such decisions often enjoy…
Category: Other
Furor over speech payment shows Legacy a bad idea
I told you so. “Dedicating sales tax to specific uses bad public policy,” was the headline on a column published April 9, 2006, arguing a proposed increase in the sales tax dedicated to funding conservation and arts programs was a…
Don’t look for easy answers to gas price puzzle
The fact that the United States has become a net exporter of petroleum products would be news to nearly everyone and would infuriate many as they filled their gas tanks at $3.99 per gallon or more last week. They need…
Planting delays will be felt in China
Crop planting is seriously delayed this year. Who will that affect more, Chinese factory works or the average U.S. household? Merely asking the question illustrates the degree of integration of the world’s food markets. This all seemed highly relevant Monday…
Fed’s simple move masks complex reality
The Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee met this week and decided to let its most recent monetary easing program end as scheduled. Chairman Ben Bernanke also held a news conference where he took questions from reporters on Fed policy. This…
Medicare hurting a lot worse than Social Security
Federal outlays for Social Security and Medicare, our nation’s two largest entitlement programs, will come to $1.24 trillion this fiscal year, almost exactly one-third of all spending. Neither program’s financing is fully sustainable over the long run. Medicare’s problems, however,…
Comparing national systems can provide insights
There is more than one way to skin an economic cat. That may sound obvious, but not all economists believe it. Many on both sides of the political spectrum believe their ideas are the only path to national economic success.…
Against entitlements? Abolish Medicare drug benefits
If you are concerned about the inexorable growth of entitlement spending and want to cut federal deficits, there is an obvious first step: Repeal the $60 billion per-year Medicare drug benefit, Part D, and eliminate the Medicare Advantage plans that…
Obama’s vagueness was expected but disappointing
Barack Obama did not disappoint in his much-hyped speech Wednesday on how to address the nation’s fiscal problems. I expected generalities and overly optimistic projections larded with some demagogy on Republicans destroying Medicare. That is what we got. Perhaps the…
Spending proposals are small progress toward country’s needs
In offering concrete proposals on reducing Medicare and Medicaid spending, House budget chairman Paul Ryan, Republican of Wisconsin, performed a valuable service. Unfortunately, the rest of his budget plan perpetuated confusion and collective self-deception rather than providing clarity. The Obama…