Student loans are gradually becoming a crisis. At the macro level, student loans are the only sector of consumer finance that is growing since the recession began 3 years ago. Federal student loans outstanding now total more than $1 trillion. That's more than total credit card debt. From Mybudget360.com: Student loan debt only segment of … Continue reading Student Loans and the Building Crisis
revolution
It’s the Political Economy That Must Change.
Peter Dorman at Econospeak has an excellent post on the real challenges facing the U.S. today. It's the political economy that must change. It no longer serves the interests of the vast majority of Americans. We need more discussion and action at these levels> It’s the Political Economy, Stupid!, by Peter Dorman: Sometimes living in … Continue reading It’s the Political Economy That Must Change.
Shock Doctrine, Neo-liberalism, and Current Events
Primarily for my Comp Systems and Political Economy students (this is part one): As previously noted here, the events in Madison, Wisconsin are not unique. There appears to be a concerted effort to roll-back collective bargaining rights for many workers and roll-back social programs all because of a supposed "fiscal crisis"- the idea that government … Continue reading Shock Doctrine, Neo-liberalism, and Current Events
“I Am Egyptian..”
I received the following email from Talaat Pasha, Ph.D., a fellow professor. I think it rather concisely explains why the Egyptian people have arisen to change their government. Dear American fellow people,I am Egyptian. I have been ruled by the state of emergency for thirty (30)years, yes 30 years. 40% of my people live under … Continue reading “I Am Egyptian..”
Income Inequality: Worse in US than Egypt/Tunisia
Washington's blog observes: Egyptian, Tunisian and Yemeni protesters all say that inequality is one of the main reasons they're protesting.However, the U.S. actually has much greater inequality than in any of those countries. Specifically, the "Gini Coefficient" - the figure economists use to measure inequality - is higher in the U.S. [Click for larger image] … Continue reading Income Inequality: Worse in US than Egypt/Tunisia
Tunisia, Egypt and “isms”
Note to regular readers: You may notice an increasing number of posts that deal with pure political economy or international issues. In the past my posts have been dominated by macro-economic concerns and that's largely because my teaching schedule was heavily macro. I'm teaching a new class this term that is essentially Political Economy 101, … Continue reading Tunisia, Egypt and “isms”
EconProph 