On virtually every meaningful measure, this recession stacks up as only the third or fourth worst post-World War II recession, but its effects are much more profound in a few areas. One area that will be most apparent is the changes the economy has wrought on consumer credit.
One of the more intriguing things economists are called upon to do is what is known as non-market valuation. This is a process for estimating a â??priceâ?? of something that isnâ??t typically bought or sold.
This flu season looks to provide us an inkling of the real dangers inherent in large-scale health care reform, most especially
a full-blown national health care option.
So, the problem isn’t necessarily a big spike in job losses, but in much lower job-creation numbers.
Business and people now, and in the future, will choose to locate
in places that have the right mix of taxes and public services.
There’s a wonderful fight brewing between some of the world’s best-known economists.
This Labor Day sees the American labor movement in serious decline. In fact, U.S. private-sector union membership
has been in serious decline for three decades.
The Cash for
Clunkers program has seriously challenged my high-mindedness. It is time for a bit of soul searching.
Classes start this week at Ball State University, and other colleges and universities across the country. For many, it is
a bittersweet moment, as parents say goodbye to their now young adults, handing them over to professors and scarily youthful
resident hall assistants for safekeeping.
In almost every place that two or more Americans gather, health care is debated. Because the bills before Congress are
inaccessible, the debate has shifted instead to principles such as the role of government and individual freedoms. I think this a healthy thing.
The Indiana State Fair is a great treat, but there’s a lot more to it than the food and fun. In 2008, more than 859,000 folks visited the fair. According to our estimates, spending at the fair last year led to more than $63 million in total economic activity.
A few weeks ago, a couple of my economist colleagues took issue with the phrasing in one of my columns. In a rare turn
of events, they are right, and I was wrong.
California can no longer sustain its government. This is the lesson for Indiana.
The postmortem and dissection of the federal economic stimulus plan have begun in earnest. The president has added to his woes by saying the stimulus will take years, not months, to work, and his chief economist managed to squeak out the headline or two that the worst is ahead of us.
Property-tax caps, as well as a dwindling population and commercial base, have left Muncie in the uncomfortable
situation of cutting budgets. Since the bulk of costs are related to fire and police salaries, few options
are available. The city has turned to the short length of rope the Legislature offered amid the debate
on property tax caps—the Local Option Income Tax.
It would be artless this week to write an article on economics and business in Indiana without remarking upon the passing of John Fisher. Much has been written about his legacy over this past week, so I will make do with an anecdote and a lesson I have learned from him.
Unemployment often is a necessary and natural part of a healthy economy. But job losses that come when workers or even entire
industries become redundant are especially painful.
The worst is likely behind us, but difficult times lie ahead, especially for the unemployed.
Yhe budget concerns that Muncie and other local governments face are really a circular problem. Taxes got out of hand largely
because of an 18th century system of local government. That same system cannot fix the problem–for it is the problem.
General Motors Corp.’s bankruptcy marked the second-largest commercial failure in modern history. It is an opportunity for deep reflection.
