How does one make sense of a US presidential candidate calling for the banning of Muslims entering the country and the tracking and profiling of those who live here? How does one make sense of a US Supreme Court justice suggesting that Blacks should not go to top-tier universities? We live in strange times and … Continue reading »
economic inequality
Innocent Bystanders? Monetary Policy and Inequality in the U.S.
Recent popular demonstrations such as the Occupy Wall Street movement have made it clear that the high levels of inequality in the United States remain a pressing concern for many. While protesters have primarily focused their ire on private financial institutions, the Federal Reserve (Fed) has also been one of their primary targets. The prevalence … Continue reading »
Detroit’s water crisis: The flood of inequity
Declaring “Water is a Human Right,” hundreds marched in the streets of Detroit on July 18 to protest the city shutting off water services for thousands of residents too poor to pay their utility bills. Since March of this year, the Detroit Sewage and Water Department (DSWD) has cut off running water to over 15,000 … Continue reading »
Inequality In the Twenty-First Century
As part of his nationwide book tour, French economist Thomas Piketty stopped on campus and in San Francisco last week to speak to overflowing lecture halls. The lecture I attended in San Francisco quickly filled to capacity, and the enthusiasm in the audience was palpable. Piketty’s new book, Capital in the Twenty-First Century, has catapulted … Continue reading »
State of the Union 2014: The cognitive power of the President
There are enough people guessing what the president will do. This is about what he almost certainly won’t do, but what I would like him to do. The president has material power without the Congress, and personally, I would like to see him use it. He could issue an executive order for the government to … Continue reading »
Wealth and motivations for saving
In a recent column in the Atlantic called “Building the Wealth of the Poor and Middle Class,” Noah Smith suggests a few ways to improve the unequal distribution of wealth in America. He notes that “one obvious thing we could do to make wealth more equal is – surprise! -redistribution…Giving the poor and middle-class more income will … Continue reading »
The verdict on class and voting
Class issues stood out more in the 2012 presidential election than in previous ones, even more than in 2008. The campaigns invoked, as always, issues of all sorts, but seldom in American politics are the issues of class so prominent as they were this year. Governor Romney’s personal wealth and how he accumulated it were … Continue reading »