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Newsletter
Economic globalization
Globalization has been covered heavily in the news recently, with special focus on the rise of China in the global economy and the sense of more job insecurity in the United States.
Newsletter
School vouchers: the right choice or wrong policy for improving our schools?
August is back-to-school time, but for many families that means a return to poor-performing schools. The perennial question is how to improve performance. The use of school vouchers is one proposed but highly debated solution. This article examines the history of school vouchers and the major arguments for and against them.
Newsletter
Executive compensation and market risks
Some U.S. taxpayers were angry and felt betrayed when financial company executives received large bonuses in the midst of the 2008-09 financial crisis. These executives headed some of the same firms whose risky practices contributed to the crisis?and then later received billions of dollars in government bailouts. Who makes the changes in executive compensation policies and regulations to avoid such risks in the future? Read the February 2010 Newsletter for answers and interesting insights.
Newsletter
Time inconsistency: today’s actions = tomorrow’s regrets
Have you ever bought something you really couldn?t afford? You simply swipe your credit card and leave the store with something shiny and new. That instant gratification overpowers any thought of the regret you?ll have when you must start paying off your accumulated debt. Economists call this phenomenon time inconsistency. Read the September 2011 newsletter for some ideas on how to prevent time inconsistency for yourself and your government.
Newsletter
The economic cost of war
It is difficult to measure the cost of the Iraq war and related expenses; it is at least as difficult to decide exactly what costs to measure. The May 2008 issue compares the two most widely cited estimates: one from the Congressional Budget Office and the other from researchers Joseph Stiglitz and Linda Bilmes. The newsletter also compares these estimates to U.S. GDP over the same time frame to get a better sense of the war's cost in relation to the entire U.S. economy.
Newsletter
Big-box retail and its impact on local communities
What is the local impact of big-box retail? Some states have begun to reconsider whether the benefits of such development are worth the costs to local communities.
Newsletter
Financial regulation: a primer on the Dodd-Frank Act
Last July, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 brought the most sweeping financial regulatory reform since the Great Depression. The May 2011 Liber8 newsletter outlines key provisions of the Act intended to prevent or lessen future financial crises and enhance consumer protection.
Newsletter
Baby boomer retirement
Over the course of the next two decades, an average of 10,000 baby boomers per day will reach retirement age. Their retirement will cause a surge in federal spending. This month's Newsletter shows how the retirement of the baby boomers will affect government programs such as Social Security and Medicare and the federal budget.
Newsletter
Deflation: who let the air out?
Inflation, deflation, disinflation. They affect the prices of everything we buy. To find out how and what?s happening in today?s economy, see the February 2011 newsletter, ?Deflation: Who Let the Air Out??
Newsletter
U.S. health care insurance and the uninsured
With continuing increases in both health care spending and the number of Americans who are uninsured, everyone seems to have an opinion on how to rein in costs and provide better coverage. This month's Newsletter offers an overview of why costs are so high and what can be done to improve the situation.