Tom Emmer is a deeply unserious candidate for office. There will be many examples of why that is popping up between now and election day. Here’s one: his comments on public employee pay. I really have to wonder how much attention Tom Emmer is paying to his own legislative staff people, who are themselves public… Continue reading Emmer and government employees
Month: August 2010
Fannie and Freddie
More financial regulation stuff, prompted by this post, and this one from Economix. . I agree 100% that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac should go, that the mortgage interest deduction should be limited or abolished, and that the government should no more meddle in preferring homeownership over renting and vice versa. As we’ve just learned,… Continue reading Fannie and Freddie
Financial Reform
I’ve wanted to write something about the financial reform bill for a while now, but school and work and wedding planning and campaigning and the rest of real life have conspired against me. I did, however, find this post on the Freakonomics blog asking a few experts on what they would do to simplify the… Continue reading Financial Reform
Online Poker Bill Advances
Not quite as boring a headline as “Worthwhile Canadian Initiative”, but it’s still a good sign. The bill passed the House Financial Services Committee by a pretty healthy margin. There are still several steps to go before it becomes law, but hopefully this means that Congress is starting to understand the inevitability of online poker.… Continue reading Online Poker Bill Advances
Corporate politicking
Citizens United was a poor decision for democracy. I can understand how it came about: it was the logical extension of a set of decisions and customs dating from the 19th century. However logical and direct that train of thought may be, though, it loses sight of one big issue: that corporations, while a convenient… Continue reading Corporate politicking
A darker shade of humanity
The mosque near Ground Zero, the English-only city ordinance in Lino Lakes, the immigration law in Arizona…quite a lot of people these days are upset by “the other”. Each of these topics in turn deserves a full rundown, but in short, a lot of it boils down to backlash against a changing world, a world… Continue reading A darker shade of humanity