Economic Update

Economic Update – Good for Profits, Bad for Society – 02.28.16

Updates on Citibank calls "Recession" for 2016, Robert Gordon's new book "Rise and Fall of American growth, college students to Europe for free educations, drug and food companies profit at public's expense, economics of presidential candidates, pension struggles heat up, and why China's slowdown due to US/Euro/Japan economies. Major discussions of (1) US unemployment and (why profit motive yields economic decisions so often good for profits but bad for society.

Economic Update – Capitalism is the Problem – 02.21.16

Updates on Bloomberg's money, negative interest rates, the oil market, Puerto Rico's cruel sales tax, Fed Reserve governor supports breaking up banks 'too big to fail,' and Apple borrows despite its huge cash hoard. Response to listeners: converting capitalist into worker coop type enterprises. Major discussion: three alternative responses to the huge problems of capitalism today.

Economic Update – Economic Change, Economic Disorder – 02.14.16

Updates on China achieves economic superpower status, profit produces drug scarcities, Ireland's unjust austerity, millionaire tax in Massachusetts. Major discussions of self-destructive cut-backs in public higher education and the chaos of the monetary system (banks, Fed Reserve, etc.).

Economic Update – Lessons About and From Socialism – 02.07.16

Updates on the economic significance of Sanders' Iowa vote, Keynes on risks of revolution against capitalism, costs of oil market collapse. Interview with author Pete Dolack on lessons for today of past experiments in socialism.

Economic Update – How Markets Fail – 01.31.16

Updates on Johnson Controls Corp evades taxes, Disney sued over abuse of HB-1 visa system, French workers strike against austerity and against socialist government; response to listeners on tax-subsidies for churches and lessons of Israel's kibbutz experience, Major discussion of (a) 5 major market failures, and (b) major change in UK Labor Party policy favoring worker coops