We demand a miracle!
Dave Ross Commentary – Listen: We demand a miracle! For the first time in four months… the number of new claims for unemployment has fallen below 400,000. Here’s one economist who says that is clearly good news: “Maybe this economy has a little more life than investors or the federal reserve thinks.” But here’s another […]15 years ago
Put it on my phone
Listen to Dave’s commentary: Put it on my phone Once upon a time, the purpose of the American economic system was to create and spread wealth, and do it better than anybody else. Today of course, our economic system has one purpose: to scare you into buying gold. In case you haven’t been following the […]15 years ago
I have seen our future and the future is gold
Listen to Dave’s commentary: I have seen our future Let’s run down the list: we’ve tried Republican tax cuts, we’ve tried Democratic tax cuts. We started a stimulus program, then we ended the stimulus program, we closed the FAA, we reopened the FAA, some of us ridiculed the president, some of us prayed for him: […]15 years ago
Why the downgrade of our AAA rating is so irritating
Listen to Dave's commentary: Is anyone reading the fine print? You know what's really galling about Standard & Poors' yanking our AAA rating?
It puts us behind France.
15 years ago
We needed Superman, and got Clark Kent
Drew Westen (the psychologist who wrote “The Political Brain”, one of the best books I’ve read) writes in the NYT that Obama blew his chance. He played the mild-mannered wimp, when he should’ve confronted the crooks in the alley and smacked them unconscious: …But the arc of history does not bend toward justice through capitulation […]15 years ago
Wow — somebody listened!
Since many of us were critical of Congress for shutting down a big chunk of the FAA for no reason, it's only fair that we compliment them for making amends.15 years ago
When fear is your friend
Listen to Dave’s commentary: When fear is your friend You never know from day to day what shiny bauble will catch the eye of investors, but when it’s bad news, you can bet that large numbers of people will overreact. The pros will warn them not to panic: “Control the emotion. Over the next few […]15 years ago
The kneecapping continues
Listen to Dave's commentary: The kneecapping continues
Dateline CRAZYTOWN:
"The political dispute has cut funding for the FAA . "
And the result is that FAA projects to improve airports -- work that's already been funded -- has been shut down.
15 years ago
What happened to America’s ego?
Listen to Dave’s commentary: What happened to America’s ego? It’s bad enough that we can barely keep our government solvent; that we have to worry whether the Chinese will downgrade our bonds, that the Federal Aviation Administration is closed down, that we now have to pay the Russians to get us to the Space station. […]15 years ago
Will a recession follow the debt deal?
Listen to Dave’s commentary:Now they tell us I saw this headline: “Agreement not likely to ease joblessness.” What? Yes! It quotes an economist saying that the new debt deal is “pushing the nation toward a new downturn.” The double dip. We also got another bummer of an economic report. As Economist Nigel Gault describes it: […]15 years ago
I’ll Fix This!
Here’s who owns the US debt. Notice that except for China, Russia, and Brazil, the rest are all under our defense umbrella. As are a bunch of others lumped into the “All Other Nations Category.” They get the protection; we pay for it. Double in the case of the “Oil Exporting Nations” since we buy […]15 years ago
It’s about the fingerprints
Listen to It’s about the fingerprints As you know there is a debt deal. I tried explaining it earlier today and I could just sense listeners lapsing into unconsciousness. And then I realized — that’s the point! You’re not SUPPOSED to understand it! The deal is designed so that all the controversial parts, like raising […]15 years ago
The atheists sue… for what?
Listen to The atheists sue… for what? The first time I saw the rubble at Ground Zero, I remember thinking, there’s your memorial. There was a 50 foot section of the facade that had fallen askew, and I remember thinking, ‘just rope off a section of that and save it as-is, like the Hiroshima memorial […]15 years ago
Is the Tea Party suicidal?
Listen to Is the Tea Party suicidal? Is the Tea Party suicidal — and will it take an already shaken economy with it. The latest numbers show two things — that Great Recession of 2009 … was worse than we first thought. And that the Lousy Recovery of 2011 continues to be lousy. And now […]15 years ago
Are you ready for some magic?
Listen to Are you ready for some magic? Things are finally moving in Congress, painful though it may be. “I’ve had kidney stones, they’re easier to pass than this!” remarked Rep. Steve Cohen of Tennessee. Anyone getting scared yet? Besides investors, retirees, banks, and most of the animal kingdom? Well, Senate leader Harry Reid says […]15 years ago
Get your default kit ready.
Listen to Get your default kit ready. Do you have your nest egg bandages? Your credit tourniquet? I’m just joking of course. There is no such thing as a default kit. No easy advice like “drop and roll” or “duck and cover” for what happens after August 2nd. We’re entering unexplored territory. Senate leader Harry […]15 years ago
Today’s bedtime story.
Listen to Today’s bedtime story Once upon a time, there was a married couple, living in the biggest most beautiful house on the block. But they had a problem: they had been borrowing for years just to make ends meet. One day the husband said “this is making me sick to my stomach, we must […]15 years ago
Get Ready for Tough Love
Here’s an analysis of the actual effects of the various budget plans from CBPP: Policymakers would essentially have three choices: 1) cut Social Security and Medicare benefits heavily for current retirees… 2) repeal the Affordable Care Act’s coverage expansions while retaining its measures that cut Medicare payments and raise tax revenues, even though Republicans seek […]15 years ago
Meet Your Debt
There seems to be some dispute over how all this deficit spending happened. For the benefit of the amnesiacs (From the NYT): Anyone notice which item makes up the largest chunk — enough to offset everything Obama passed?15 years ago
Same old tactic, same old result.
Listen to Same old tactic, same old result So tell me, could Anders Behring Breivik look LESS like our terrorist stereotype? Yet when the news broke about the attacks in Norway EVERYBODY thought al Qaeda. I don’t blame people who jumped to that conclusion — it’s been drilled into us for a long time. But […]15 years ago
Dave’s Reviews are In
Tom Tangney has always frightened me, not only because of his intimidating presence but because he is an award-winning reviewer and each summer I risk becoming a reviewee as a principal in the Seattle Gilbert & Sullivan Society. Of course, Tom rarely reviews us, being that we remain stubbornly un-mainstream, but others have, and the […]15 years ago
OK you got my attention
Republican House members from left to right are Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Mich., Rep. Nan Hayworth, R-N.Y., and Rep. Charles Dent, R-Pa.”(AP Photo) Listen to OK you got my attention Friday morning’s headline: “Debt limit showdown threatens our savings.” I understand that many House members have all these precious principles they’re following. But there are some […]15 years ago
Jose Antonio Vargas loses his drivers license
Listen to Jose Antonio Vargas loses his drivers license Jose Antonio Vargas has written hundreds of stories as a reporter for the Washington Post and shared in a Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of the Virginia tech shootings. But last month he published a piece his lawyer warned him would cause trouble: “Lawyers told me […]15 years ago
Remember that book “I’m OK, You I’m Not So Sure About”
Now there’s a way to be sure. Listen to Remember that book “I’m OK, You I’m Not So Sure About” The unemployment news is still bad, the space shuttle program is over and they’re talking about retraining NASA scientists to inspect oil rigs, a heat wave is causing streets to buckle like an apocalypse movie. […]15 years ago
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