tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.comments2024-03-18T07:59:05.430-05:00The Grumpy EconomistJohn H. Cochranehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04842601651429471525noreply@blogger.comBlogger27599125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-67004385186632620802024-01-28T13:27:24.169-06:002024-01-28T13:27:24.169-06:00There is an important difference between electric ...There is an important difference between electric vehicles and things that qualify for loan guarantees appropriated for electric vehicles, it being understood that "electric vehicles" is not the term used in the law and that the law really is one you should read, one paragraph at a time, each paragraph several times and then just repeat until you can recite from memory. <br /><br />I promise you no one on earth cares about electric vehicles. My client wants a loan and your guy wants some interest and none of us want to take any risk so lets stick that part on Uncle Sam.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-26062232216098477912024-01-19T12:58:00.995-06:002024-01-19T12:58:00.995-06:00I suggest you check the fine print in Fairtax hust...I suggest you check the fine print in Fairtax hustle a bit closer. It sounds great. <br /><br />But until you realize that only a small part of Fairtax is a tax on personal retail sales, and that they have, for example, a 10 billion dollar tax on the state of Texas, <br /><br />Texas -- and all states all cities all counties must "remit" massive taxes on "all expenditures" in cluding wage expenditures, pension expenditures- operational expenditures.<br /><br /> Texas would owe ten billion - in advance (all such "persons" must remit these taxes "in advance" their "expenditures" are 40 billion") <br /><br />You would have to be observant enough to note HR 25 definition of a person. It's not just human "persons" -- they include (in their math too!) -- <br /> that all government entities are persons. But they never -- ever -- make that clear in their thousands of explainations. Seekerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10206503506011763393noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-24161104498643377992024-01-08T20:47:47.478-06:002024-01-08T20:47:47.478-06:00I am planning to move over to substack completely....I am planning to move over to substack completely. Unless something goes wrong. So far it's working well. John Cochranenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-48077109653147635282024-01-08T15:45:26.181-06:002024-01-08T15:45:26.181-06:00Will everything be on substack now?Will everything be on substack now?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-60886740870597029242024-01-06T17:49:36.889-06:002024-01-06T17:49:36.889-06:00Diversity of bad ideas is bad. There is no religio...Diversity of bad ideas is bad. There is no religious diversity among physics faculty (90 percent are non believers and 99 percent in elite institutions; and perhaps 99.9 percent of Nobel laureates). And there are no departments of astrology. Conservatives need epistemic support that has been slipping with modernity because indefensible things are what it is: indefensible. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-41948106430358057512024-01-06T05:53:54.290-06:002024-01-06T05:53:54.290-06:00I had the same problem.I had the same problem.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-88794349717581203112024-01-05T10:04:22.221-06:002024-01-05T10:04:22.221-06:00yes, yes, yes. The constitution doesn't prosc...yes, yes, yes. The constitution doesn't proscribe who enforces the disqualification, the entire government is obligated to uphold the constitution.<br /><br />IF it had actually turned out to be true that Obama wasn't born in the US would he have been disqualified? By whom? Well, the Supreme Court could, and in fact was given the chance because some guy in Pennsylvania filed a brief with them. Congress could. IF Obama wasn't qualified the states could have kept him off their ballots, as Colorado and Maine state law requires (and presumably lots of states).<br /><br />And, addressing the blog post and in particular the update, would it have been undemocratic to have excluded Obama IF he wasn't born in the US? Of course not, because the constitution says you can't be president if you weren't born in the USA. The constitution also says you can't be president if you have engaged in insurrection.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-86515375768761057142024-01-05T03:07:16.649-06:002024-01-05T03:07:16.649-06:00for infla- tion and stabilization
Lots of formatt...for infla- tion and stabilization<br /><br />Lots of formatting bugs like that.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-55337999726324091602024-01-04T12:30:12.532-06:002024-01-04T12:30:12.532-06:00Read the WSJ piece a have no disagreement with the...Read the WSJ piece a have no disagreement with the positive things said about abundant reserves and IOR. But, does the new monetary regime come without costs? <br /><br />In the scarce reserves regime, Fed operations funded themselves. That's no longer the case. You might argue that under scarce reserves there would still be interest payments on government bonds. Since the Fed purchases bonds in order to create the ample reserves, IOR is just a another form of interest payment on government debt. But, IOR is always going to be at short term rates so Treasury can't restructure 10% of it's debt when rates are low. Sure, it's not a huge amount of money as government finance goes but it seems pretty close to a kind of perpetual bank subsidy you complained bout when it came to differential money market rates. Jerry Melskynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-59523726426430151792024-01-04T12:11:51.468-06:002024-01-04T12:11:51.468-06:00The comments used to be interesting. Now the com...The comments used to be interesting. Now the comment section has become a right-wing echo chamber. I won't bother any more. Cheers, John. See you at the glider field sometime.<br />--E5<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-14210984544798505292024-01-04T09:04:47.300-06:002024-01-04T09:04:47.300-06:00I can't find a list of who on the faculty was ...I can't find a list of who on the faculty was involved in drafting it. Should be open, not anonymous. The first listed signature is Bari Weiss. Maybe she was consulted. Bill O'Learynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-1495074079449063702024-01-03T11:57:46.203-06:002024-01-03T11:57:46.203-06:00Old Eagle Eye mentions "career damaging"...Old Eagle Eye mentions "career damaging". Now, permanent career damage is readily accomplished by complaining about actions of the government of Israel and getting noticed by the Canary Mission.<br />--E5Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-40101674154341103512024-01-03T11:53:29.964-06:002024-01-03T11:53:29.964-06:00Such fear about universities! In my university ti...Such fear about universities! In my university time it was commonplace for children of wealthy families to have posters of Che Guevara up on their walls. They did recreational protests against the authorities. They waved around Mao's little red book. And afterwards they became loyal servants of the establishment. If you succeed in turning universities into bastions of conservative conformity I dread the consequences.<br />--E5Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-77536297741088818282024-01-03T11:08:38.635-06:002024-01-03T11:08:38.635-06:00"though you can be sure if similar opinions w..."though you can be sure if similar opinions were being expressed by men in white sheets the reaction would have been swift and brutal." Really? I don't recall any case of KKK being given such treatment. Except in a Mel Brooks movie.<br />--E5Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-79942539427598316052024-01-02T22:50:59.276-06:002024-01-02T22:50:59.276-06:00"The constitution is clear, we cannot reasona..."The constitution is clear, we cannot reasonably debate whether or not an insurrectionist should be disqualified. We can only debate whether or not Trump is an insurrectionist."<br /><br />Disqualified by who? Congress? The various state legislatures? The court system?<br /><br />https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/articles/article-ii/clauses/350<br /><br />Suppose 25 state legislatures debate, determine that Trump is an insurrectionist, and vote to remove Trump from the ballot.<br /><br />The other 25 debate, determine that Trump is not an insurrectionist, and vote to keep him on the ballot.<br /><br />"Saying that it's impossible for Colorado alone to dish our the punishment is incorrect both because Colorado has a duty to uphold the constitution irrespective of if anyone else does as well and because disqualification isn't punishment, it's mechanism (like impeachment) to protect the population from the President."<br /><br />Regardless, the simple fact is that Colorado acting alone cannot fulfill the mechanism prescribed in the Constitution - that is all I was saying.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-45358299208582154632024-01-02T17:32:12.428-06:002024-01-02T17:32:12.428-06:00I contacted substack, and they invite queries for ...I contacted substack, and they invite queries for help at support@substackinc.com or https://support.substack.com/hc/en-us. I hope you can figure this out, and keep sending your always interesting commentary. John Cochranenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-14538808671578018162024-01-02T15:53:11.047-06:002024-01-02T15:53:11.047-06:00some education system you have over there.
People ...some education system you have over there.<br />People have no idea of what an intifada is or what plagiarism is.Not Trampishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12738633092867411422noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-25531044185836513622024-01-02T14:41:59.531-06:002024-01-02T14:41:59.531-06:00I mentioned in an earlier post that it was not pos...I mentioned in an earlier post that it was not possible to enter comments on the SubStack posted articles. And, I have just now confirmed that that is so for reasons not revealed by SubStack. SubStack rejects the profile, try as one might to enter name, handle, and profile simplified to the point of nullity. As you are in the process of transfering over to SubStack from BlogSpot, I will not be joining you there although I have registered my email with you.<br /><br />I wish you all good luck and prosperity going forward.<br /><br />/s/ Old Eagle EyeOld Eagle Eyehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05270080708077871311noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-30242390275817263962024-01-02T13:58:52.963-06:002024-01-02T13:58:52.963-06:00O, what it means to be Gay!
Outed by the end of th...O, what it means to be Gay!<br />Outed by the end of the day<br />But if whoever comes in<br />Behaves just like her twin<br />The real problem won't go away<br />sierranoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-44917134464646276482024-01-02T13:58:29.255-06:002024-01-02T13:58:29.255-06:00O, what it means to be Gay!
Outed by the end of th...O, what it means to be Gay!<br />Outed by the end of the day<br />But if whoever comes in<br />Behaves just like her twin<br />The real problem won't go awayAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-91388352944614489752024-01-02T13:11:09.172-06:002024-01-02T13:11:09.172-06:00This essay is 100% correct:
https://www.msn.com/e...This essay is 100% correct:<br /><br />https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/voices-it-s-not-up-to-the-voters-to-decide-if-trump-can-run-for-president/ar-AA1mmLG8?ocid=socialshare&pc=HCTS&cvid=519eb4a8ae5b446899be34411458ef6e&ei=13Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-66379493850007562312023-12-30T12:20:25.251-06:002023-12-30T12:20:25.251-06:00No analogy between what happened to American India...No analogy between what happened to American Indians and Arabs, mostly from Egypt and Jordan who occupied what was called Palestine. Even passing over the undeniable fact that the Hebrews were the ancient people there The Ottoman empire had the land right. Early Zionists bought pieces of it. The Balfour declaration split the place in two pieces, onpeople should getgete for the Jewish people and one for the Arabs who happened to be there at that point. The Arabs went to war, and their leaders emncouraged the population to theave. The Arabs have waged one war after another since and no one is helping the Palestinians, especially not the Hamas terrorists. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-57921133053206992972023-12-30T04:21:40.601-06:002023-12-30T04:21:40.601-06:00Public pressure is unlikely to cause Harvard Corpo...Public pressure is unlikely to cause Harvard Corporation to change. Storming the Bastille isn't a strategy. As you point out in the essay, the university administration and staff have a track record predating the behavior that the congressmen expressed outrage over. What the students are getting out of this is a degree with a brand appended to it, "Harvard Graduate". Only when that brand is damaged, for whatever reason, will Harvard Corporation change.<br /><br />Arguments over freedom of expression and association, etc., fall on deaf ears, until the lack thereof damages the corporate brand. One can say same about Stanford University. Students will put up with quite a lot of bull and nonsense, provided it doesn't rise to the level that is career damaging. But when the school's reputation is irretrievably damaged by the acts or inaction of the university regents, then you will have change, and only then, and naught before then. Old Eagle Eyehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05270080708077871311noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-61683687310895135722023-12-29T13:49:36.394-06:002023-12-29T13:49:36.394-06:00Controversy about Harvard and its role in society ...Controversy about Harvard and its role in society is nothing new. Viz., <br /> ‘There is a natural hostility between college-bred men and those who are "self-made," to which class belong the majority of journalists, and this enmity expends itself in spreading false rumors and injurious statements. The only thing that we can do is to live down this bad reputation by conducting ourselves properly as students and as graduates, and by spreading a knowledge of the true state of things whenever there is a chance.’ The Harvard Crimson, January 26, 1888.<br /><br /> Universities were first established as seminaries, and Harvard Univ. was no exception to that sectarian tradition, i.e., the education of adherents to the various and sundry religious sects for the proselytization of the sect's beliefs amongst the heathen and for defense against the heretics seeking to turn the faithful against the true religion (howsoever defined). <br /><br />But, G. Conti uses the term 'sectarian' in another more base context, i.e., "illiberal", though there is little doubt that the behaviour observed in recent times within the universities, and without, run to gross sectarianism as formerly practiced during the Reformation and Counter-reformation.<br /><br />What conclusions to draw from this? I am tempted to respond with quotations from Ecclesiastes I: 3-4, and 9-11, viz.,<br />"What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun? One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh; but the earth abideth for ever. … The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun. Is there any thing whereof it may be said, See this is new? it hath been already of old time, which was before us. There is no remembrance of former things; neither shall there be any remembrance of things that are to come with those that come after."<br /><br />It is not a juvenile phase that passes away with the passage of time. Nor is it as violent as the revolutions of 1848 that K. Marx and F. Engels are often associated with through their various and sundry publications and their personal acts in support of active revolution against the established order of that day and age, though it may yet come to that, as it has in the more recent past, e.g., 1968.<br /><br />It was well noted during my early college days that the most dangerous sort of revolutionary, to any society ripe for revolution, is the wealthy revolutionary. In the case of The Harvard Corporation, you have wealth in plenitude and an unassailable redoubt in the form of private institution of higher learning with a long pedigree, against which the 'hoi polloi' and their representatives have few if any slings and arrows capable of denting the institution's drive to revolutionize the state of the Union. <br /><br />And, so we come to that state of affairs when "thesis" and "antithesis" contend to later emerge as "synthesis", of a sort. It may well be necessary to establish free universities, not in the sense that the tuition therein shall be "free", i.e., costless, but that the institutions shall be founded on liberal principles and practices free of the sectarianism that G. Conti properly finds objectionable in the leading private universities today. <br />Old Eagle Eyehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05270080708077871311noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-582368152716771238.post-6014118307518801862023-12-29T13:05:56.033-06:002023-12-29T13:05:56.033-06:00This is a fascinating subject (or puzzle?). But fo...This is a fascinating subject (or puzzle?). But for a long time now I cannot understand why the focus is generally on nominal and not real rates (inflation indexed bonds) Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com