Commentary
Commentary
New Entry for Worst Study of the Year Award
As with previous studies of medical bankruptcy, this study puts forward a number of definitions of “medical bankruptcy” and defines any bankruptcy with any one of these conditions as suffering medical bankruptcy. The one that immediately stands out is “medical bills over $5,000 or 10 percent of household income on ...
Commentary
Government is not your nanny—reject the federal soda tax.
In order to cover the exorbitant cost of President Obama’s universal health care program, the Senate Finance Committee has proposed, among other things, that the government levy additional taxes on alcohol, soda, and other sugar-sweetened beverage. The committee members and their supporters in the health community like the idea because ...
Agriculture
Analyzing the politics of climate change
San Francisco Examiner, June 9, 2009 We hear it every day. News headlines read: “Global Warming Biggest Threat of 21st Century, Experts say.” (businessweek.com. May 13th, 2009. Gardner, Amanda). News anchors provide us with a choice, either we believe the scientists that support global warming hypotheses, or we reject science ...
Commentary
Soda tax proposal should fizzle out
President Obama has promised the American people that full-scale healthcare reform will be enacted by the end of this year. The decidedly less-inspiring task of determining how to pay for his $1.2-trillion reform package has fallen to congressional lawmakers. The Senate Finance Committee is considering dozens of options for generating ...
Business & Economics
California’s Economy: Boxer And Krugman Get It Wrong
New York Times columnist Paul Krugman argued in a May 25th column that California’s economic problems are rooted in a dysfunctional government that finds it “extremely hard to raise taxes, even in emergencies.” On May 28, California’s junior Senator, Barbara Boxer made a similar argument on MSNBC’s Morning Joe. Both ...
Commentary
Want Better Teachers? Improve Working Conditions
New research finds that compared to their public school counterparts, private school teachers are much more satisfied with their jobs. Why? Private schools hire based on talent and empower their teachers with decision-making about classroom discipline, curricula, and standards. In contrast, public schools often squander teacher talent, with only 68 ...
Business & Economics
Curing the Healthcare Maladies in the Stimulus Package
As a psychiatrist, I’ve observed that people generally make bad decisions when they’re rushed and in crisis. Politicians, unfortunately, often fail to recognize this aspect of human nature. Clearly, we are in an economic crisis, which makes me immediately fearful of politicians’ proposed cures. In rushing to stimulate the economy—a ...
Business & Economics
The Politically Incorrect Guide™ to the Great Depression and the New Deal
Everything they say about the Great Depression and the New Deal is wrong. No economic myth these days is more pernicious than the myth that the free market caused the Great Depression and the New Deal got us out of it. That, as economist Robert P. Murphy points out is ...
Business & Economics
Brown does a better job than Obama at the 65th anniversary of D-Day
In case anyone thinks that I only ever post negative comments about Gordon Brown (not so, as you can see HERE ), I do agree with today’s positive assessment of his D-Day performance by Clark Judge, a former Reagan speechwriter: ‘Today, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown was by far the ...
Commentary
Canadian patients face long waits for low-tech healthcare
Washington Examiner (Washington, DC), June 5, 2009 San Francisco Examiner (San Francisco, CA), June 5, 2009 KEY DATA: The average patient waiting period between referral and actual treatment for the 12 most frequently needed specialties was nearly 4½ months in 2008, double the average from 15 years ago. KEY DATA: ...
New Entry for Worst Study of the Year Award
As with previous studies of medical bankruptcy, this study puts forward a number of definitions of “medical bankruptcy” and defines any bankruptcy with any one of these conditions as suffering medical bankruptcy. The one that immediately stands out is “medical bills over $5,000 or 10 percent of household income on ...
Government is not your nanny—reject the federal soda tax.
In order to cover the exorbitant cost of President Obama’s universal health care program, the Senate Finance Committee has proposed, among other things, that the government levy additional taxes on alcohol, soda, and other sugar-sweetened beverage. The committee members and their supporters in the health community like the idea because ...
Analyzing the politics of climate change
San Francisco Examiner, June 9, 2009 We hear it every day. News headlines read: “Global Warming Biggest Threat of 21st Century, Experts say.” (businessweek.com. May 13th, 2009. Gardner, Amanda). News anchors provide us with a choice, either we believe the scientists that support global warming hypotheses, or we reject science ...
Soda tax proposal should fizzle out
President Obama has promised the American people that full-scale healthcare reform will be enacted by the end of this year. The decidedly less-inspiring task of determining how to pay for his $1.2-trillion reform package has fallen to congressional lawmakers. The Senate Finance Committee is considering dozens of options for generating ...
California’s Economy: Boxer And Krugman Get It Wrong
New York Times columnist Paul Krugman argued in a May 25th column that California’s economic problems are rooted in a dysfunctional government that finds it “extremely hard to raise taxes, even in emergencies.” On May 28, California’s junior Senator, Barbara Boxer made a similar argument on MSNBC’s Morning Joe. Both ...
Want Better Teachers? Improve Working Conditions
New research finds that compared to their public school counterparts, private school teachers are much more satisfied with their jobs. Why? Private schools hire based on talent and empower their teachers with decision-making about classroom discipline, curricula, and standards. In contrast, public schools often squander teacher talent, with only 68 ...
Curing the Healthcare Maladies in the Stimulus Package
As a psychiatrist, I’ve observed that people generally make bad decisions when they’re rushed and in crisis. Politicians, unfortunately, often fail to recognize this aspect of human nature. Clearly, we are in an economic crisis, which makes me immediately fearful of politicians’ proposed cures. In rushing to stimulate the economy—a ...
The Politically Incorrect Guide™ to the Great Depression and the New Deal
Everything they say about the Great Depression and the New Deal is wrong. No economic myth these days is more pernicious than the myth that the free market caused the Great Depression and the New Deal got us out of it. That, as economist Robert P. Murphy points out is ...
Brown does a better job than Obama at the 65th anniversary of D-Day
In case anyone thinks that I only ever post negative comments about Gordon Brown (not so, as you can see HERE ), I do agree with today’s positive assessment of his D-Day performance by Clark Judge, a former Reagan speechwriter: ‘Today, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown was by far the ...
Canadian patients face long waits for low-tech healthcare
Washington Examiner (Washington, DC), June 5, 2009 San Francisco Examiner (San Francisco, CA), June 5, 2009 KEY DATA: The average patient waiting period between referral and actual treatment for the 12 most frequently needed specialties was nearly 4½ months in 2008, double the average from 15 years ago. KEY DATA: ...
