Reading

Created
Mon, 23/01/2023 - 08:18
Stephanie Kelton traces the problem to misunderstandings resulting from a poor choice of terms in which to talk about government finance, modeling it conceptually on household and firms finance, even when the former is the monopoly issuer of its currency and all that implies financially and economically, whereas firms and households are users of the currency that must obtain the currency, e.g, to pay taxes, since the government is the sole supplier. Consequently, it's a mess that those in a position to profit from can exploit. She suggests adopting a terminology that fits operational realities based on existing institutional arrangements instead of continuing to use terms that promote a fantasy.

The Lens
Created
Mon, 23/01/2023 - 08:02
Brazil and Argentina are making plans for a Latin American currency called the Sur, to “boost regional trade and reduce reliance on the US dollar”. Lula had pledged it while running for president.
Geopolitical Economy
Brazil and Argentina preparing new Latin American currency to ‘reduce reliance on US dollar’
Ben Norton
Created
Mon, 23/01/2023 - 06:35
A new sandpit for long side discussions, conspiracy theories, idees fixes and so on. To be clear, the sandpit is for regular commenters to pursue points that distract from regular discussion, including conspiracy-theoretic takes on the issues at hand. It’s not meant as a forum for visiting conspiracy theorists, or trolls posing as such.
Created
Mon, 23/01/2023 - 06:34
Another Message Board Post comments on any topic. Civil discussion and no coarse language please. Side discussions and idees fixes to the sandpits, please. I’ve moved my irregular email news from Mailchimp to Substack. You can read it here. You can also follow me on Mastodon here I’m also trying out Substack as a blogging […]
Created
Mon, 23/01/2023 - 06:16
Week-end Wrap – Political Economy – January 22, 2023

Week-end Wrap – Political Economy – January 22, 2023

by Tony Wikrent

 

Strategic Political Economy

How Much Income Do You Need to Be Rich? 

[Of Dollars And Data, The Big Picture 1-19-2023]

Based on the 2019 Survey of Consumer Finances, what are the top 10%, top 5%, and top 1% of household incomes in the U.S.? We take a high level overview of how much income the highest earning households make so that you can determine for yourself what it means to be rich…

Created
Mon, 23/01/2023 - 06:00
The right wing media is making a huge deal out of Chief of Staff Ron Klain’s resignation, insisting that it has something to do with the document pseudo-scandal. The mainstream media hasn’t gone there yet, merely juxtaposing the two events in ways that insinuate without saying it. As a matter of fact, Klain had said he was resigning some months back and then they agreed that he would stay on for a while longer. It has nothing to do with the documents. And let’s be clear about something, if we’re going to compare Biden and Trump, take a look at the turnover, particularly how many of his top staff resigned under pressure, in the first two years of his administration: Set out below is a list of the senior level departures from the executive office of the president since the beginning of the Trump administration (each of the 65 “A Team” positions is only counted once toward the turnover rate, thus, this chart only includes the first person to hold/depart a given position).
Created
Mon, 23/01/2023 - 04:58
Contemporary Australia is not the wayward step-child of Britain. It was created in our own country. Is it time to establish an Australia Day freed from the dark shadows cast by the now discredited British Empire? Debate about Australia Day began early this year. The Albanese government rescinded the regulations which forced local government to Continue reading »
Created
Mon, 23/01/2023 - 04:57
An extremist Israeli government insists that apartheid policies will be permanent, that the 2022 slaughter of Palestinians will be repeated, that settler stealing and violence will be ignored and international law derided. In these circumstances, surely no Australian citizen, let alone a politician, could justify such policies? Incredulity about Israeli army, police and settler impunity Continue reading »
Created
Mon, 23/01/2023 - 04:56
In recent months, Sinophobia in the mainstream media in the West, in particular in the United States, has resulted in widespread condemnation of China for its undemocratic and repressive social credit system. Never mind America has something similar. There are also big dissimilarities between China and the U.S. in this realm that beg to be Continue reading »
Created
Mon, 23/01/2023 - 04:54
It’s time for the Australian Republic Movement to move on from the minimalist campaign of the 1990s and embrace reform of our archaic constitution. In 1999 those who campaigned for a Republic during the 1990s were at pains to point out that nothing else would change. Only the Head of State would be an Australian Continue reading »
Created
Mon, 23/01/2023 - 04:50
The connection between economic integration and political security has long attracted attention. Integration through intensive trade and investment relations has led to greater interdependence and made conflict more costly, helping states to maintain peace and stability. But interdependence can also increase the risk that geopolitical tensions might turn into open conflict. The situation in East Continue reading »
Created
Mon, 23/01/2023 - 04:30
For those of you who remember the embarrassment of the Times coverage of the “Whitewater” scandal, it must seem like déjà vu all over again. It does to me. The paper’s editors are trying, and I mean really trying, to make the Biden classified documents issue a thing. And I mean a grave thing. The stage was ably set by the subject line of the email I received blasting out their latest deep dive on the story: “Inside Biden’s 68 days of silence.” It’s this like a Gabriel García Márquez homage? I mean good lord. Are we really doing this again? Of course we are. It’s how they roll. I took the liberty of a short set of annotations. That’s from Josh Marshall who does an excellent job of analyzing the rapidly escalating hysteria around Joe Biden’s classified documents. I, of course, remember Whitewater as I’m sure quite a few of you do too.
Created
Mon, 23/01/2023 - 03:57


Click here to go see the bonus panel!

Hovertext:
I hate drawing crowds, but I love portraying humans as lemmings.


Today's News:

I know no reads this blog, but I just wanted to paste the shockingly positive reviews Bea Wolf has gotten so far. More are on the way, but are under wraps for now. Thanks unending to all of you for putting me in a position to have the intellectual time to develop the skills to create such a risky book, and for the financial and career stability to then actually take the risk.

Created
Mon, 23/01/2023 - 02:30
Remember the fuss over a different one? The twice-impeached, much-investigated instigator of the Jan. 6 insurrection was in North Carolina on Saturday for the memorial service of Ineitha Lynette Hardaway, a.k.a. “Diamond” of the right-wing political duo Diamond and Silk. The memorial service at Fayetteville’s Crown Theater was not the political rally for himself that Donald Trump had hoped. Size matters to him. He didn’t get it. The Fayetteville Observer reports that just over 150 people attended the event in the theater that holds 2,400. Donald Trump’s audience was smaller and the event took longer than he’d expected. Still, the memorial service did resemble a Trump rally. Yes, the pillow guy was at Hardaway’s funeral … to praise Donald Trump. Trump’s eulogy had plenty of his usual shtick. Those of a certain age will recall what a fuss Republicans and conservative pundits raised in 2002 over the memorial service for Sen. Paul Wellstone of Minnesota.
Created
Mon, 23/01/2023 - 02:21

By Nancy Snyder / CounterPunch On Tuesday, January 10,  the United States Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the matter of Glacier Northwest, Inc. v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local Union 174. If Glacier Northwest prevails, the Supreme Court ruling will make it far easier for alleged labor disputes that result in damage to company property, to […]

The post Is SCOTUS on the Verge of Dismantling Labor and the Administrative State in One Blow? appeared first on scheerpost.com.