For some years now (since the pandemic), I have been receiving E-mails from those interested in the Eurozone telling me that the analysis I presented in my 2015 book – Eurozone Dystopia: Groupthink and Denial on a Grand Scale (published May 2015) – was redundant because the European Commission and the ECB had embraced and was committed to Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) so there was no longer a basis for a critique along the lines I presented. I keep seeing that claim repeated and apparently it...

Innovation or Obsolescence? The Economic Dilemma.

by Bill McBride Calculated Risk Newsletter Intro: Former Angry Bear writer Bill McBribe taking up the issues of Mortgage Delinquency, Foreclosures, and Real Estate Owned (REO) foreclosed housing. The value of which decreased in the second quarter to (what Bill calls) a historically low total. Read on. We will NOT see a surge in foreclosures that would significantly impact house prices (as happened following the housing bubble) for two key...

From everything I’ve read, Medicare Advantage is just as scam. By the time my Lovely And Talented Wife® retired and shifted to Medicare two years ago, she took the regular Medicare. This July when I retired, I followed suit. Turns out, a growing number of hospitals and health systems nationwide have dropped some or all of their Medicare Advantage contracts.“Data on this topic is limited. In January, the Healthcare Financial Management Association...

Provbaserade mervärdesmått är på många sätt tidstypiska då de med hjälp av mätningar och sofistikerad dataanalys ger till synes objektiva svar på hur väl skolor lyckas med sina uppdrag. Måtten är attraktiva då de justerar för att selektionen av elever skiljer sig mellan skolor, vilket är särskilt värdefullt i ett segregerat skolväsende … Det är viktigt att påpeka att mervärdesmått, trots sina konceptuella styrkor, också har betydande tillkorta-kommanden som gör att de kan...

Figure 1: Variation in the Cost-Minimizing Technique with Selected Coefficient of Production This post reports on some work with Steedman's corn-tractor model. I have yet to find an instance of triple-switching. I have found a case of reswitching, though. Figure 1 above and Table 1 below show how switch points vary with perturbations of the labor needed to produce a bushel of corn in the corn industry with Type I tractors. Only one switch point exists in region 1. Around this switch point...

My critique of RCTs Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs), while useful in some contexts, are often overvalued in economics and social sciences. My critique centres on the following key points: 1. Lack of External Validity RCTs often suffer from problems of external validity, meaning that their results cannot easily be generalized beyond the specific experimental conditions. In the controlled environment of an RCT, many real-world factors are ignored or...

I spent much time over my 50 years working in foreign countries. I needed something to do so I would sight see on weekends and in the early evenings. The Germans gave me a car so I would take off to visit castles, etc. Ended up in Czech Republic, off to Prague on a Sunday. The Germans paid for my gasoline and meals as they sent me to those countries. Cut over to Strausberg France, Zurich. The same in China, Thailand, Philippines, Malaysia. I...

Usually, listeria contamination comes from poor cleanup after a “lot-size” of a product is complete. It thrives in a moist, colder environment. Lunch meat, hot dog, sausage etc, manufacturing environment can be prone to having listeria contamination. After a lot or a shift is complete, the machines and the rooms have to be cleaned. The machines disassembled, tables, and equipment are steamed. The walls, floor, and corners are wiped down with a bleach...

The U.S. economy has been growing faster than military spending, so defense spending as a share of GDP has been decreasing. While the $dollars spent are increasing, the percentage of GDP Defense Spending takes up has been decreasing since 1952. Perhaps a better question is do we really need to spend this much on Defense? Perhaps wiser and defined expenditures may be in order? U.S. Defense Spending in Historical and International Context...