Econ70
The Triple Crown drought has reached 33 years since Seattle Slew won in ’78 (Secretariat in ’73). Why the dearth? The ’85 tax law changes proved dramatic. Owners no longer could write off racing expenses unless they were involved on…
Read MoreIn April ’10 Obama nominated MIT economist Peter Diamond, to be a Fed governor. Sen Shelby questioned his experience. Moreover, he got all the R’s on the Sen Banking Comm. to vote against confirmation. In Oct ’10 Diamond won the…
Read MoreEver wonder why airfare from Pittsburgh (Pitt) to Las Vegas (LV) is less than from LV to Pitt? If you fly from Pitt to LV you are going on vacation and you have lots of choices. But if you are…
Read MoreA Singaporean investor set a new record for the world’s most expensive champagne by paying $44,000 for a bottle of 1841 Veuve Cliquot. It was salvaged from a shipwreck 165 feet deep off the Aland Islands located between Sweden and…
Read MoreJobs, where are they? The Labor Dept. employment tally came in at 54K well off the 232K in April and 194K in March. While our economy may be entering another “soft patch” the thing is you don’t get 2 of…
Read MoreThe Institute of Supply Management’s Manufacturing Activity Index fell to 53.5 in May from 60.4. This shows the pace of manufacturing activity moderating since the index reached a 7 year high of 61.2 in March. Add to it a decline…
Read MoreThe cost of education is so high, student achievement so dismal and technology and computerized pedagogy sufficiently developed and ubiquitous that the long awaited education revolution is about to begin. If ed moves to an online teaching model students could…
Read MoreIn poor countries people spend much more on food than we do. In the Philippines 47% of income is spent on food. The amount is 45% in India, 40% in Vietnam, 36% in Indonesia, 33% in Thailand, 30% in China,…
Read MoreThe Indy 500 is more than a huge financial Memorial Day event. Via trickledown technology it has vastly improved our lives. Turbochargers were 1st used in ’52, rearview mirrors in ’11 and seatbelts after WWII. Wide low-profile tires now used…
Read MoreBecause Quantitative Easing Two (QE2), which is soon ending, forced interest rates down to record lows, stocks and commodities soared as investors’ searched for better returns than those available on Treasuries. US exporters also enjoyed the lift they received from…
Read More