Mike Norman Economics

One frequently encounters variations of the phrase "unsustainable debt trajectory" (or similar) in statements by mainstream economists. The phrase is popular as it offers what appears to be a sophisticated criticism of some fiscal policy setting that is disapproved of, but without having any content that can be used to prove the speaker wrong. Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) largely rejects that "debt sustainability" has theoretical validity for a floating currency sovereign. I will focus on...

I am monitoring the US Department of Labor’s weekly data releases for the unemployment insurance claimants account, that I reported in my last commentary on the US labour market – Tip of the iceberg – the US labour market catastrophe now playing out (April 6, 2020). Their latest release (April 9, 2020) – Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims – shows that in the prior week ending April 4, 2020, the initial claims rose by 6,606,000, but this was down on the increase the week before by 261,000....

hahahahahahha!!!I guess maybe one good thing out of all this is that these morons get to eat shit....Our new projections out today see budget deficits totaling more than $3.8 trillion (18.7 percent of GDP) this year under current law https://t.co/6P5oxdVxd5. pic.twitter.com/bs79QflHL0— CRFB.org (@BudgetHawks) April 14, 2020

Findings provide an opportunity to develop drugs and vaccines for coronaviruses before they emerges from animals to cause a human epidemic: Date: November 10, 2015 Margaret Thatcher said that the government budget was like a household budget, and it meant we were living beyond our means.  The Conservatives said that Austerity would bring about a thriving economy, so they would have to make the necessary cut backs.  The conservatives said that socialists like spending other people's...

A strain found in India showed changes in the mechanism used to bind the virus to human cells which could render current research futile Researchers are targeting the same process that allowed Sars to infect people, but the mutation could upend their assumptions The coronavirus mutation that threatens the race to develop vaccine

India PunchlineWhy the OPEC+ deal is a many-splendoured thing M. K. Bhadrakumar | retired diplomat with the Indian Foreign Service Reminiscence of the FutureCognitive Dissonance. Andrei Martyanov OilPriceOPEC+ Deal Is “Too Little And Too Late” Nick CunninghamPeoples DispatchThe OPEC+ deal on oil production: what are the implications? Abdul Rahman SputnikUS Energy Department Estimates 2.1% Drop in Oil Production in May, 1% Drop in Natural GasThe Unz ReviewModels: the Logic of FailureJames...

In the context of history, the primary factors that shaped Western civilization are Judaeo-Christian religion, Greek thought, Roman organization and law, and modern science. The primary factors that shaped Chinese civilization are Taoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism, with Marxism-Leninism being a blip on the screen. This is revealed in the differences in response to crisis. Asia TimesConfucius is winning the Covid-19 war Pepe Escobar

JP Morgan CEO suggested that massive reserve additions by the Fed have essentially "maxed-out" bank capital to where they can no longer lend. Trade and invest using MMT. Get a 30-day free trial to MMT Trader. https://www.pitbulleconomics.com/mmt-trader/?s2-ssl=yes/

Two months before the novel coronavirus is thought to have begun its deadly advance in Wuhan, China, the Trump administration ended a $200-million pandemic early-warning program aimed at training scientists in China and other countries to detect and respond to such a threat. The project, launched by the U.S. Agency for International Development in 2009, identified 1,200 different viruses that had the potential to erupt into pandemics, including more than 160 novel coronaviruses. The...

The reproduction factor is declining. We need to push it below 1 for the virus to start to fade away and then we can move to safety protocols and mass testing. The problem is that without mass testing, R remains uncertain or "Bayesian." The results so far are "estimates" that will be revised as testing progresses. Marginal Revolution Suppression is Working, R is Declining Alex Tabarrok | Bartley J. Madden Chair in Economics at the Mercatus Center and Professor of Economics at George...