Strictly a copy and paste of the Senate Finance Committee Chair Senator Ron Wyden Committee Report. I can not add to this other than say, repeal the 2017 Tax Act. Interim Report: Big Pharma Tax Avoidance Senate Finance Committee Investigation Reveals Extent to Which Pharma Giant AbbVie Exploits Offshore Subsidiaries to Avoid Paying Taxes on U.S. Drug Sales. The Provisions in the 2017 trump Republican tax law allows AbbVie to generate most of...
Read More »PTSD Is a Nightmare. A Fully Funded VA Can Provide Relief
As a veteran, I am interested in what the VA does in providing healthcare. Suzanne and Steve have a great interest is how veterans are treated by the VA. PTSD Is a Nightmare. A Fully Funded VA Can Provide Relief, jacobin.com, Suzanne Gordon and Steve Early Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is the often-hidden wound of war. Post-9/11 wars added hundreds of thousands of former service members to the patient rolls of the Department of...
Read More »TPM: What If We’d Been Mean to Robert E Lee?
This casting was up December 29 at Talking Points Memo (TPM). It is about 50 minutes long and a very interesting conversation between John, Kate, and Prof. Heather. Covering the state of democracy in America is the topic and well worth the listen. Belaboring the Point: What If We’d Been Mean to Robert E Lee? Talking Points Memo, Josh Marshall, Kate Riga, and Prof. Heather Cox Richardson. [embedded content] ...
Read More »NPR Nails It: Highlights Two Programs That Make a Difference to Millions
NPR Nails It: Highlights Two Programs That Make a Difference to Millions, Center for Economic and Policy Research, Dean Baker. Dean Baker: I’ve complained a lot about how the major media outlets seem to highlight every piece of bad news about the economy, while downplaying or ignoring altogether the positives. Given my complaints, I want to offer a word of praise to NPR. Last night, NPR ran two pieces highlighting programs that make a big...
Read More »An honorable Republican
I’ve only voted for a Republican once (John Anderson, in a presidential primary in North Carolina), but if I lived in Vermont, I might vote for Republican governor Phil Scott:“Many point to his steady hand during crises, including last summer’s historic flooding and the pandemic, when he appeared in daily, low-key televised briefings to reassure Vermonters and encourage them to take social distancing and mask wearing seriously. Vermont, a sparsely...
Read More »Two Working-Class Candidates Launch U.S. Senate Runs
Who you might know better as a proponent of better care for veterans, Steve Early is backing two candidates for the Senate. In Nebraska opposing Repub Deb Fischer, steamfitter Dan Osborn. Running in West Virgina is grandson of a coal miner and veteran Zach Shrewsbury against coal baron Jim Justice. Some down to earth populist candidates being fielded against the status quo. Two Working-Class Candidates Launch U.S. Senate Runs, Labor Notes, Steve...
Read More »Soft Landing II
I promised a second entry in the series, Soft Landing this time it’s monetary. The question is why didn’t the FED’s monetary tightening cause a recession. There certainly was tightening, the Federal Funds rate rose from 0.07% to 5.33% There certainly were people who predicted a recession in 2023 (hey they still have 4 days so I am giving a hostage to fortune). Indeed some forecasters put the probability at 100%. Why ? First...
Read More »Private Equity Reaps profits, and a Hospital Slowly Dies
I pay to be able to talk to Merrill. What is fun is when Andrew Sprung shows up. And I am recognized for the words I write on healthcare. Been in enough hospitals to be treated for a blood disorder, I know the routine. The first hospital put me on death row. A woman stopped by and asked me if I knew where I was in the hospital. Of course, I said no. She told me, I was on death-row and they did not expect me to live. My platelets were very low and...
Read More »Trump University 2.0
Remember the wildly successful Trump University? Me neither.But elect Donald, and he promises to build on that success by stealing the endowments of major universities to create a national diploma mill.Click the link.Trump University 2.0
Read More »Last Two Presidents Impact on the Economy -Briefly
I am not going to put the entire detail of the Economic Impact under both presidents up at Angry Bear. It is just too much. You can read it at the link. Snippets of information are below. MSN does not provide the charts which are in the WaPo’s article. If you have a subscription, you may want to look at it. What I have here is much of the wording of the article along with some my thoughts. “Biden’s economy vs. Trump’s, in 12 charts” (msn.com) Abha...
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