Pope Pius XI and Mussolini
The Pope and Mussolini: The Secret History of Pius XI and the Rise of Fascism in Europe by David I. Kertzer David Kertzer provided a wonderful overview not only about the complex relationship between [...]
How to Recover American Jewish Identity
By Elliott Abrams, Fellow Middle Eastern Studies at Council on Foreign Relations Summary In an essay written for the Wall Street Journal (Oct 24, 2024), Elliott Abrams highlighted that American Jews have focused less [...]
American Revolution 1775-1776
Introduction I recently heard a lecture by David McCullough on the first 18 months of the American Revolution. McCullough highlighted that the odds were great against a successful revolution given that Great Britain had [...]
Congressional Budget Office Warns of Impending Debt Challenge
The Peter Peterson Foundation reported the following based on the June 18, 2024 CBO report.Yesterday, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) warned that the United States is on an unsustainable fiscal course marked by rising deficits. [...]
There Are Not Enough Babies, Alarming the Whole World
Today’s Wall Street Journal (5/14/24) highlighted a startling demographic milestone. Specifically, the global fertility rate has dropped so precipitously that over time the world’s population will decline. The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation [...]
Just How Dangerous is Europe’s Rising Far Right?
Today’s New York Times highlighted the growing role of the far-right parties in Europe. Anti-immigration parties with fascist roots—and an uncertain commitment to democracy—are now mainstream. The growth of right-wing populism often takes the [...]
Trump Allies Draw Up Plans to Blunt Fed’s Independence
Today’s Wall Street Journal reported that Donald Trump’s allies are quietly drafting proposals that would attempt to erode the Federal Reserve’s independence if he wins a second term. That said, his advisors are divided [...]
Income Tax Paid by Americans
The Wall Street Journal provided an overview of the income tax paid by Americans, broken down by income. Our nation is on an unsustainable fiscal path, driven by the mismatch between the government’s commitments [...]
J Street Seeks a Middle Path on Gaza. Is That Possible Anymore?
Today’s New York Times wrote an article describing the purpose of J Street. The article raised the question of whether a middle path on Gaza is possible. Please note… Large parts of this essay [...]
Vanderbilt University Will Charge Some Students Nearly $100,000 in Total Expenses for the 2024-2025 School Year
Today’s New York Times reported that Vanderbilt University will charge some students nearly $100,000 in total expenses for the 2024-2025 school year. Other schools are expected to follow Vanderbilt over the next few years. [...]
U.S Women Make Gains in Highest Paying Occupations but Still Lag Men
The Pew Research Center provided an overview of women in today’s U.S. Workforce. Women make up 35% of workers in the United States’ 10 highest-paying occupations, up from 13% in 1980. They have increased [...]
China’s Growth Figures Do Not Add Up
Despite China’s boast that its economy grew at 5.2% in 2023, Greg Ip of the WSJ discounts that figure. Ip wrote, “Western analysts and even some Chinese officials have long taken Chinese gross domestic product with [...]
Majority of Biden’s 2020 Voters Now Say He’s Too Old to be Effective
A New York Times/Siena College poll revealed that even his supporters worry about his age. Among his supporters, 47% strongly believe that he is too old to be effective, and 26% somewhat agree. The [...]
Mexico’s Gang Policy Spreads Grief
“People just ask themselves: Who can help us? Not even God?” Today’s Wall Street Journal highlighted a major problem in Mexico. Specifically, criminal gangs behind the U.S. drug epidemic are seeing accelerated growth, commanding [...]
The U.S Government’s Mounting Debt Will Make Our Interest Costs Soar
Treasury yields have increased to multiyear highs, forcing the U.S. government to pay significantly more in interest. This in turn is putting significant pressure on the budget. America is expected to spend $870 billion, or [...]
Japanese American Incarceration During World War II
Introduction I was not made aware of the internment of about 112,000 persons of Japanese ancestry who lived on the U.S. mainland, mostly along the Pacific Coast, until about 20 years ago. About two-thirds [...]
Lessons Learned from the Band of Brothers
Originally published in January 2003 This past week three of members of Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, U. S. Army spent significant time with the fixed income department of Lazard [...]
A School District Offers Classes Separated by Race
School District Offers Classes Separated by Race by Sara Randazzo and Douglas Belkin A November 26 Wall Street Journal article highlighted a very troubling development. The Evanston, Illinois School District, in an attempt to [...]
The American Story, by David Rubenstein
I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this book. David Rubenstein, who has enjoyed a remarkable career, interviewed leading historians. For the most part, these historians discussed the subjects of their biographies. While one can read this [...]
Culture War in Israel Undermines Women’s Rights
An August 13 New York Times article, “Growing Segregation by Sex in Israel,” highlighted the culture war that has sharply divided Israel’s secular majority and the politically powerful minority of ultra-Orthodox Jews, who frown on [...]
Colleges Spend Money Like There is No Tomorrow
Introduction I received a BA from the University of Texas (Austin), a MA from the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor), and an MBA from the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor). My tuition at the University [...]
My last essay for the Herald-Tribune
As I sit down to write my final column for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune after 15 years as a guest columnist, I find myself filled with a mix of emotions. First and foremost, I want [...]
The Next Chapter
As I sit down to write my final article for the Sarasota Herald Tribune after 15 years as a guest columnist, I find myself filled with a mix of emotions. First and foremost, I want [...]
Current status of the U.S. economy
The U.S. economy is entering the second half of 2023 much stronger than anticipated. The American economy is benefitting from broad-based momentum despite rising interest rates. For more than a year, there have been [...]
Growing ties between U.S. and India
On June 22, 2023, President Biden showered Indian Prime Minister Narendi Modi with expansive flattery during a lavish state dinner. He sought to draw India closer at a time when the United States is in [...]
Federal Reserve faces policy challenges
The Federal Reserve currently has two major challenges — fighting inflation and averting a credit crunch. Raghuram Rajan, the former governor of the Reserve Bank of India, summarized the problem: “They (the Federal Reserve) are between a [...]
Officials Neglect Covid Vaccines’ Side Effects By Allsyia Finley
Introduction Allsyia Finley, writing for the Wall Street Journal, exposed several disturbing issues: (1) While we do not know the percentage of people taking the covid vaccine that have suffered very serious negative consequences, [...]
The remote work revolution
The COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly impacted our lives. The entire ecosystem collapsed during the early months of the pandemic as office workers shifted to working from home. The office market has been slow to [...]
In retail industry, theft is growing faster than sales
Shoplifting is an alarmingly common crime. The National Retail Federation estimates that retail shrink, which includes theft but also problems leading to inventory being lost or recorded inaccurately, was roughly $95 billion in 2021. Dean Rosenblum, [...]
US faces unprecedented default on its Treasury debt
On May 1, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned in a letter to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy that the U.S. may run out of measures to pay its debt obligations by June 1. A potential [...]
With world’s largest population, India will wield economic muscle
On April 19, the United Nations projected that India’s population growth will surpass that of China by the middle of 2023. India’s population, driven by a combination of high fertility rates and improved health care and [...]
Prolonged inflation, banking crisis dims outlook for world economy
On April 11, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned that its economic outlook for 2023 has been lowered. IMF Managing Director Kristina Georgieva cautioned that global growth is set for the weakest near-term expansion since 1990. The [...]
US labor market shows signs that it is beginning to soften
On March 4, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) reported that there were nearly 9.9 million job openings in February. This is a reduction from January’s downwardly revised 10.6 [...]
The precarious state of the US financial crisis
The role of the Federal Reserve is to create a safer and more stable monetary and financial system. Unfortunately, our central bank faces enormous challenges. We have not broken the back of inflation and the [...]
Two of the largest bank failures in U.S. history change the nation’s financial landscape
The sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) — the nation’s 16th largest bank — and Signature Bank have changed the financial landscape. Stephen Solaka, managing partner at Belmont Capital Group, wrote, “Sentiment went very quickly [...]
Alone and Exploited, Migrant Children Work Brutal Jobs Across the U.S. – by Hannah Dreier
Alone and Exploited, Migrant Children Work Brutal Jobs Across the U.S. --by Hannah Dreier The New York Times uncovered that an overwhelming number of migrant children are ending up in very dangerous jobs. Largely [...]