Year: 2014

Paul Krugman on Wall Street’s Revenge:

“Most interest groups have stable political loyalties. For example, the coal industry always gives the vast bulk of its political contributions to Republicans, while teachers’ unions do the same for Democrats. You might have expected Wall Street to favor the G.O.P., which is always eager to cut taxes on the rich. In fact, however, the securities and investment industry — perhaps affected by New York’s social liberalism, perhaps recognizing the tendency of stocks to do much better when Democrats hold the White House — has historically split its support more or less equally between the two parties.” “But that all changed with the onset of Obama rage. Wall Street overwhelmingly backed Mitt Romney in 2012, and invested heavily in Republicans once again this year. And the first payoff to that investment has already been realized. Last week Congress passed a bill to maintain funding for the U.S. government into next year, and included in that bill was a rollback of one provision of the 2010 financial reform.”

No, Cleveland cops, you are not owed an apology. You owe us one.

Senator Thomas Carper realized the most significant achievement in his long congressional career on Saturday night: when the Cromnibus Bill passed, the <a href="http://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/local/2014/12/12/delaware-national-park-expansion-clears-congress/20325941/#.">long sought after Delaware National Park</a> was finally established. For years, Delaware was saddled with the indignity of being the only state in the union not to have a national park. This was the most important and damaging problem facing Delaware for decades, second only to the lack of bipartisanship, so of course our brave and tireless Senator fought to solve the problem. <blockquote>U.S. Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., who has steadfastly sought a park designation for Delaware, released a statement after the vote on Friday. "Now, Delaware can have a national park that preserves and teaches the lessons of our state's heritage and our country's history," he said. U.S. Rep. John Carney, D-Del., called the historical park a "tremendous achievement," in a written statement, saying "I look forward to taking my family and visitors from out of state to visit the natural and historic sites in our park."</blockquote> Now, I don't know about you, but when I think of a "national park," I think of a contiguous natural place that we have preserved in its wild state. I also think of a park.

This appears to be what is left for us, to die. With no apparent representation in the halls of power, our choice is to die - literally or symbolically. We are wild about calling ourselves and our country "free." Have you been to a football or baseball game lately? They have become nauseating exercises in self-congratulations over our great freedoms. But what are we really free from? Are we free from debt? Probably not. Are we free from being beaten or killed by cops? Are we free from anxiety? Hardly. Free from the indignity of institutionalized injustices? We have never been less free then we are today. When the majority of Americans are not represented by a political party, inch by inch, drop by drop freedom wanes.

Michael Hanlon claims that the “true age of innovation – I’ll call it the Golden Quarter – ran from approximately 1945 to 1971,” during which time just about everything that “defines the modern world either came about, or had its seeds sown,” from the pill to computers to civil rights. One reason he believes we’ve stagnated? Our increasing risk aversion...