07/08/2021
Today

Retirement Is More Expensive Than You Think

David Eifrig, American Consequences

Here are some vital tips covering everything from medical bill woes to overspending habits to enrich your life in the September of your years.

Digging Sociologically Deeper Into Why People Buy Things

Emily Stewart, Vox

A sociologist on why people buy too many things.

Defending Capitalism at a Time of Great Criticism

Richard Reinsch, Law & Liberty

Editor's Note: This essay was originally published by RealClearPublicAffairs in its 1776 Series. The moral justification for markets finds itself on the defensive in the face of aggressive challenges issuing from progressives but also from economic nationalists on the right. Many of those on the right don't understand themselves to be challenging markets as such […]

Elon Musk's Grand Tunnels Never Seem To Go Anywhere

Henry Grabar, Slate

Chicago, Baltimore, Los Angeles, Miami—who hasn't been promised a tunnel?

Lebanon's Misery Exposes Sickness of Modern Economics

John Tamny, RCM

"If my son asks me for something and I can't give it to him, I just can't handle it." Those are the words of Saad al-Din Dimasi of Lebanon, as spoken to Ben Hubbard of the New York Times. Hubbard is covering the tragic economic implosion of Lebanon, and Saad is one of his subjects. In order to get gasoline, Saad puts his car in neutral with the automobile off "to preserve as much of his scarce fuel as possible." The wait to purchase gas is endless at present, and it's crushingly expensive given the collapse of Lebanon's pound. The latter has eviscerated Saad's income.

Do We Really Need a Moratorium on Apt. Evictions?

Michael Hendrix, Governing

State and local bans have been of some help in keeping renters in their homes, but the federal moratorium hasn't had much impact. Targeted cash relief and an abundant housing market are the best tenant protections.

Knocking On Doors, Biden Admin. Has Own 'Track & Trace'

Jeffrey Tucker, RCM

The Biden administration's announcement that it would go door-to-door pushing vaccines is alarming, to say the least. Vaccine data reveal that more than 90% of those vulnerable to severe outcomes from Covid are already vaccinated. Why not cheer this and move on? Why the unrelenting push for more and younger? How is this consistent with the idea of the common good? It's mystifying. The low rates of vaccinations among many might not reflect ignorance. They don't need to be muscled. They could be uninterested because they can read demographic data about Covid risk. Or maybe they are already...

Rescinding Banking 'True Lender' Hurts Credit Needy

Thomas Vartanian, The Hill

By rescinding the "true lender" rule, Congress and the president have once again reinjected a level of uncertainty into consumer lending markets

Job Openings Inch Up to Yet Another Record High in May

Robert Hughes, AIER

"Job openings hit another record high in May as businesses struggle to attract qualified workers in a tight labor market." – Robert Hughes

The Jobless Data Have Little Bearing On Stocks

Market Minder, Fisher Investments

The employment picture is interesting, but it has little bearing on stocks.

Investor Expectations About Stocks Not In the Cards

Mark Hulbert, MarketWatch

Expecting your portfolio to beat inflation by 17% annually is wildly unrealistic.

Why Some Opt Out of 2021 Child Tax Credit

Emma Kerr, U.S. News & World Report

Families are scheduled to receive their first iteration of the 2021 advance child tax credit payment starting on July 15, but not everyone who receives the payment will actually qualify for it. Those who don't qualify and fail to opt out will ultimately have to repay the monthly credit of up to $300 come tax season next year.

Dotplots: Lots of Noise, Any Actual Signal?

Richard Moody, Regions Bank

Seven Steps Toward Financial Freedom

Carrie Schwab-Pomerantz, Charles Schwab

The path to financial independence can start right now with seven important steps.

The Meaning of Jobs–Housing Mismatch for Cities

Eric Kober, Manhattan Institute

Many American metropolitan areas exhibited robust job growth in the favorable economic conditions that prevailed for most of the past decade, up to the pandemic-induced recession of 2020.

'Twin Deficits' Won't Tank the Dollar

Brian Wesbury & Robert Stein, First Trust Advisors

Important Economic Releases to Watch This Week

Richard Moody, Regions Bank

Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities: TIPS FAQs

Collin Martin, Charles Schwab

They can be a buffer against long-term inflation, but TIPS investing isn't always straightforward. Here are answers to frequently asked questions.

ISM: Good, But Could Be Better Expansion Continues

Richard Moody, Regions

Trump Tax Cuts: Searching fr. Supply Side

William Gale & Claire Haldeman, Brookings

In its first two years, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act failed to deliver its promises on investment and growth says William Gale in a blog drawing from his new report on the 2017 tax reform bill.

It Turns Out People Prefer a Job to a Tax Increase

Larry Kudlow, The New York Sun

It may not exactly be breaking news, but it turns out that people would rather have a job than a tax hike. In fact, it turns out, people would rather have a job than voting for tax hikes on other people. It also turns out that even limousine liberals

Lockdowns Aided Big Business at Expense of Small

Carol Roth, New York Post

Lockdown proponents across the media are smugly patting themselves on the back, proclaiming that stay-at-home policies didn't harm the economy.

For China's Business Elites, Avoiding Politics Is Not An Option

Li Yuan, NYT

The fallout from Beijing's crackdown on the ride-hailing app Didi has ensnared even those who made it a point to not mix business with politics.

Wyoming Eagerly Wants to Be the Crypto Capital of the U.S.

Elena Botella, Slate

Wyoming is going to great lengths to draw cryptocurrency-related businesses to the state.

Biden's Cap Gains Tax Increase: Unproductive Misdirection

John Tatom, The Hill

The biggest objection to raising the capital gains tax rate is it is based on a false premise.

Joe Biden & the G-7's Crime Against Humanity

Steven Milloy, Washington Examiner

While the media eagerly covered G-7 leaders glad-handing themselves and cheering the return of the United States to multilateralism at their recent meeting in the United Kingdom, a much darker side of the meeting was largely unreported or even reported as a positive outcome.

TikTok and Life Cycle of Products That Quickly Go Viral

Rebecca Jennings, Vox

The video app is causing products to blow up — and flame out — faster than ever.

Remote Workers Are Departing Big Cities, But Not For Midwest

Rani Molla, Vox

These workers will have major effects on cities and the areas outside them.

Biden's Corporate Tax Hike Will Hurt Working People

Bruce Thompson, Examiner

President Joe Biden has proposed trillions of dollars of tax increases on businesses, including raising the corporate tax rate from 21% to 28%. The president claims his new taxes will not touch anyone earning less than $400,000.

7 Charts That Explain the Econ. Recovery So Far

Julia Coronado, New York Times

Friday's jobs report, and a slew of other data, shows going big and going early works.

Fisher Investments on Election-Year Uncertainty: This, Too, Shall Pass

Fisher Investments Editorial Staff, Fisher Investments

Ken Fisher on Nixing the VIX

Fisher Investments Editorial Staff, Fisher Investments

Will Uncle Sam Force Big Tech to Break Up?

Fisher Investments Editorial Staff, Fisher Investments

Shattering the Debt Ceiling Myth

Fisher Investments Editorial Staff, Fisher Investments

Speculating & Investing Are Not One and the Same

Maya Sibul, Morningstar

Author and Wall Street Journal columnist Jason Zweig talks trading trends and the future of the fiduciary standard.

Can Small Towns Solve The Housing Crisis?

Addison Del Mastro, City Journal

A uniquely American place can bring down housing costs for families, if we can restore the conditions that made them possible.

Today's Willie Sutton Wields a Mouse

David Powell, Humble Dollar

OVER A PRODUCTIVE 30-year career that ended in 1950, Willie Sutton robbed as many as 100 banks for gains worth $40 million today—without ever firing a shot. That sort of bank robbery is rare now and, when it happens, customers don't lose a dime, thanks to FDIC insurance. Today, Sutton—the Babe Ruth of robbers—wouldn't waste time knocking over banks. Trillions of dollars held in millions of internet-accessible retirement and brokerage accounts are much softer and more lucrative targets.

Why The Password Isn't Dead Quite Yet

Lily Hay Newman, Ars Technica

Everyone hates the old ways of authentication. But change comes with its own drawbacks.

The U.S.-China Trade Recovery Stalls

Ironman, Political Calculations

According to trade data published by the U.S. Census Bureau, the year-over-year growth rate of trade between the U.S. and China slowed dramatically in May 2021.

In Defense of Global Stocks

Nick Maggiulli, Of Dollars And Data

On the risks and rewards of investing in stocks outside of the U.S.

My Top 10 Money Rules

Morgan Housel, Collaborative Fund

Barry Ritholtz asked people for their top 10 money rules last week. Here are mine.
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