As a kid, I learned that when people don’t meet their financial commitments, creditors could take their things. A music store that the local bank had financed went belly-up, so for more than a year, the bank peddled repossessed clarinets…
Category: Other
Productivity, not competition, is what makes nations prosperous
Competition plays a vital role in economies, but don’t make the mistake of assuming what is true for an individual company also is true for nations. The key to prosperity is productivity. The question of how we do compared with…
Ratings downgrade for U.S. is over-hyped
Recent news hints that agencies like Standard and Poor’s, Moody’s and Fitch may downgrade their ratings of U.S. Treasury bonds. This is not good news, but it is fundamentally different from a decline in an individual’s credit score, a Dun…
Self-interest, not drama, guides China’s Hu
Winston Churchill’s maxim that ‘jaw-jaw is better than war-war’ also applies to economic issues. It is better to negotiate about finance issues and international trade than not to negotiate. But don’t expect too much substance to emerge from President Hu…
Push is coming to shove on state budgets
Democratic governor Pat Quinn of Illinois is being excoriated, along with a lame-duck Legislature, for pushing through sharp increases in both personal and corporate income taxes. There are many things to criticize. The increase was twice the 1 percentage point…
Nuclear power: It’s not the risk, it’s the uncertainty
Pendulums swing in public opinion and hence in public policy. Right now the pendulum seems to be swinging in the direction of nuclear generation of electricity. About two decades ago, in the wake of the 1979 incident at Three Mile…
Government’s job creation powers limited
Many people think government can do a great deal to ‘create’ jobs. That was evident in inaugural speeches by newly elected officials such as Gov. Mark Dayton who said his first priority was ‘to bring more jobs to Minnesota.’ This…
States’ energy policies provide insight into free-market debate
Minnesota and South Dakota have very different energy policies, especially in regard to wind power. One has instituted a mandate for renewable energy sources, while the other leaves things to market forces. The two approaches say a lot about their…
2011 may bring financial roller coaster
My mother’s familiar admonition to ‘hope for the best but expect the worst’ is a good way to approach 2011. Hope that the Minnesota, national and global economies strengthen, but don’t be surprised if the overall situation worsens instead. Here…
Hybrid cars selling well, but their batteries might not get cheaper
Sales of hybrid cars continue to grow — even our neighbors bought one. But the increasing popularity of hybrids doesn’t necessarily mean that the costs of making batteries for them will get cheaper. In fact, it could result in what…