From the category archives:

Basic Economics

It’s all in the NUMBers – Insurance 101

Have you ever tried to figure out your health insurance benefits? What a confounding experience. I spent a little time today reviewing my coverage. As much as I’d like to claim it’s because I’m that organized, but really it’s just because my part time employer recently made benefits available to us. So, why not take [...]

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The Real Robin Hood

Would the real Robin Hood please stand up? “If you don’t stop levying these evil taxes, I will lead the people of England in a revolt against you!” -Robin, Men in Tights, 1993 Mel Brooks made a mildly popular movie to skewer the story of Robin in 1993 – if you love puns, you will [...]

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Obama’s Fiscal Priorities are Skewed

Blinder’s Blinders lead to National Blunders, or Obama versus King Solomon . . . So here’s a question for you: Is it better to give 50,000 people $1 or give one employee a $50,000 job that allows him to contribute to a growing company? Increasing the tax burden on small employers to increase the unemployment [...]

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Frenchonomics

I can’t even make this up . . . Students in France are protesting again. A few years ago they protested AGAINST lowering the bar for employers to be able to hire students. Employers wanted to be able to pay less experienced people a lower rate. The minimum benefits an employer has to set aside [...]

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Consenting Adults Part 2

So how is the Federal Government going to save me from myself today? Back to the topic of interns . . . which can mean SO many different things depending on the administration…. For the Obama administration it means legislation. In particular, enforcement of legislation against unpaid internships. Never mind that the Obama political campaign [...]

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Consenting Adults

The Labor Department is out to protect you from yourself. Legislation prohibiting unpaid internships is officially in force. “If you’re a for-profit employer or you want to pursue an internship with  for-profit employer, there aren’t going to be many circumstances where you can have an internship and not be paid and still be in compliance [...]

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Basic Economics – Competitive States

My buddy Scott recently sent a gem of a report along. The report was written by Dr. Aurthur Laffer. You may recognize his name from the world of finance and politics. He’s a bit of a supply-sider. Since this marks the 10th pdf uploaded to the site for the sake of sharing, I’ve created a [...]

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Education Issues: Quantity, Quality?

So let’s go for a drive. If you’ve ever had the opportunity to cross the US by car . . . say from Chapel Hill, NC to Berkeley, CA, or Boston, MA to Berkeley, CA or Atlanta, GA to San Diego, CA, you have seen that there are many choices to make along the way. [...]

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Basic Economics – When your voters are challenged

Who would’ve thought Chicago would become a tax refuge? Since the voters approved a tax hike in Oregon, politicians around the US are sending delagations to the beleaguered state. Leading the charge with offers of enticement to business owners…. Richard Daley, Chicago Mayor. Wait, seriously? Here’s what’s spurred the increase in flights to Portland: Oregon [...]

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Do Girls Suck at Math?

It’s a common refrain both from the mouths of males and females. Yet, what evidence do we have to support this? A former boyfriend even presented a LONG diatribe about the actual genetic reasons women are bad at math . . . but there’s just one problem. Namely, me. Or Jill. Or Heidi. Or Shanti. [...]

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