Blame Canada! (…or China…or Goldman Sachs…)

• The Philippines as Strategic Blunder — Matthew Yglesias – Great, quick historical analysis with important bottom line: “[It’s] usually the case that these imperial adventures don’t wind up paying the freight.” I wish we’d learn our lesson already.
• Conservative Interventionism — Brad DeLong – Good history, especially for those who are suspicious of the Fed, and great questions at the end; more on that in my forthcoming book.
• The 19.5 Years Test — Ezra Klein – This is a critical point: What is the cost of doing nothing? Klein has quantified it, at least in terms of “time.” Also, read his sentences about our moral obligation; beautifully and passionately written.
• Basic Facts: They’re Important — Jonathan Cohn – A summary of a lot of stupid misinformation so I don’t have to explain it all. Please don’t make these mistakes.
• For Financial Stability, Fix the Tax Code — Mark A. Calabria – An often overlooked, but very important, point that I will address in my forthcoming book.
• How We Feel about Our Taxes — Russ Roberts – Ah, but this is only half the story. While almost everyone wants lower taxes, most people also want more liberal economic programs, like universal health care. Of course we all want something for nothing, but we can’t have our cake and eat it too. Someone has to pay the piper. (Did I cram enough cliches into this paragraph?)
• CBO: Public Plan Would Not Drive Private Insurers Out of Business — Reuters (via truthout) – Excellent news. The next step is to address the CBO’s criticism and find new ways of lowering the bill’s effect on the budget deficit.
• Americans Fear Canada’s Health-Care System, But Not as Much as Canadians Fear America’s — Ezra Klein – The graph says it all.
• The Effect of Community Rating in Health Insurance Markets — Tyler Cowen – This finding — from one of the best health economists in the world in Mark Pauly — contradicts Bryan Caplan’s claim that adverse selection is muted or nonexistent in health care. Fortunately, the ensuing increase in uninsured should not occur if the national reform includes an individual mandate, a public plan, and subsidies for low-income households.
• Is High-Speed Rail a Good Public Investment? — Edward L. Glaeser – I will follow this series and link to Glaeser’s other posts as they become available. This is a sorely needed analysis for infrastructure that could be tremendously beneficial. I’m glad to see Glaeser speaking to the indirect benefits (for local economies, industries, etc), similar to the shortcoming I pointed out in cost-benefit analyses for Waxman-Markey. Glaeser is an excellent economist and should give the matter a fair, thorough analysis.
• Bashing Goldman Sachs Is Simply a Game for Fools — Michael Lewis – Great satire in inimitable Michael Lewis style.
• China “Manipulates” Its Currency by Lending the U.S. Money — Dean Baker – It’s convenient to blame our problems of excess debt and too little saving on China, but the truth is… (a.k.a. don’t blame the bartender because you’re an alcoholic)
• Imaginary Friends — Scientific American – Do our ever-increasing relationships with our televisions and other media devices come at the expense of our real interpersonal relationships? Are we developing an unhealthy relationship with technology?
• Senate Finance in Search of an Alternative to Employer Mandate — Matthew Yglesias – Yglesias gets this analysis right.

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