Category Archives: Fun

Why You Pay Lots for Emergency Care: “Duh, It’s a Monopoly, Dude.”

Posted on December 11, 2017 by Bruce

[This article is from the exemplary on-line magazine Vox, by Sarah Kliff, who is a super interpreter of public policy in the health arena. Follow her regularly, including especially her daily VoxCare column. ] Emergency rooms are monopolies. Patients pay … Continue reading →

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US Fisheries Regulation: States’ Rights, except When the Emperor Says NO

Posted on November 22, 2017 by Bruce

Really important example of how to kneecap regulatory processes. Result will certainly be over-exploitation of fisheries resources for the seventh largest fishery on the East Coast (summer flounder) . Needless to say, this is being led by national, Trump administration, … Continue reading →

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The Tormenting of Tillerson

Posted on November 13, 2017 by Bruce

from the October 7th edition of The Economist, page 32: Crawling back to you Mr Tillerson deserves only slight sympathy. He has shown little interest in representing American ideals, such as the promotion of human rights, while carrying out a … Continue reading →

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Unhealthy Politics in Congress

Posted on October 27, 2017 by Bruce

from The Upshot at the NY Times. The Unhealthy Politics of Pork: How It Increases Your Medical Costs The term pork barrel spending has been around for well over 100 years. It means using government funds on local projects that … Continue reading →

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Fresno Resurgent: Progress in Surprising Places

Posted on October 18, 2017 by Bruce

from the Non-Profit Quarterly Fresno Drives toward a Strong and Sustainable Community-Based Economy By STEVE DUBB October 17, 2017; Next City Fresno, California’s fifth-most-populous city, defies many stereotypes we may have of the Golden State. Be honest: When you think … Continue reading →

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Another Study Showing Economic Disadvantage Inflicted by Racism

Posted on October 8, 2017 by Bruce

from the Business Section of the Sunday New York Times, 8 October 2017 Pinpointing Racial Discrimination by Government Officials Economic View By JUSTIN WOLFERS OCT. 6, 2017 Credit:  Dani Pendergast A team of economists has uncovered persuasive evidence that local … Continue reading →

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The New Gilded Age

Posted on October 5, 2017 by Bruce

from the on-line Washington Post: The 202 The Daily 202: Why a Republican strategist thinks we’re in a new Gilded Age By James Hohmann October 4   President Trump tossed paper towel rolls to people affected by Hurricane Maria as … Continue reading →

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Semi-Free Speech; or maybe Hemi-Semi Free …

Posted on September 27, 2017 by Bruce

from Margaret Sullivan’s Style column, 24 Sept. 2017 Perspective The civil rights and Vietnam protests changed America. Today, they might be illegal.   In this scene from the PBS documentary “The Vietnam War,” college students protest in Boston on Oct. … Continue reading →

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States’ Rights: Not Federal Rights, Not Local Rights

Posted on July 6, 2017 by Bruce

from the NY Times, 6 July 2017. . .  TURF BATTLES Blue Cities Want to Make Their Own Rules. Red States Won’t Let Them.   Emily Badger @emilymbadger               JULY 6, 2017 Photo Hundreds of … Continue reading →

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If You Can Count More Than Three: Nine Obamacare Reforms Worth Doing

Posted on July 2, 2017 by Bruce

[This article is by Steven Brill, whose biography is more interesting than the squib on this excerpt from Sunday’s Washington Post. Most pertinent new information is that over the course of about three years in the early 2000’s, Brill flipped from … Continue reading →

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