A Laboratory of the Future Human Experience
A solar panel factory in Hillsboro, Ore. A decline in business formation has contributed to a flattening of the labor supply.
Can the market economy still deliver prosperity?
Continue reading… “Where are the startups? Loss of dynamism is impeding growth”
Economists are increasingly worried that young Americans will spend years buried under student debt.
Joe Mihalic was determined not to be one of the many young Americans that economists are increasingly worried about that will spend the coming years buried under student debt.
Continue reading… “How one man wiped out $90,000 in student loans in 7 months”
Banks are turning to demolition teams instead of realtors to rid them of their least valuable repossessed homes.
Bulldozers are a new remedy for banks in America’s ailing housing market.
There are nearly 1.7 million homes in the U.S. in some state of foreclosure. Banks already own some of these homes and will soon have repossessed many more. Many housing economists worry that near constant stream of home sales from banks could keep housing prices down for years to come. But what if some of those homes never hit the market.
Continue reading… “Banks turn to bulldozing foreclosed homes”
The “new normal” unemployment will be worse than the “old normal”.
The American Economics Association held its annual meeting in Denver last weekend. Most attendees appeared to be in a very forgiving mood. While the economists in Denver recognised the severity of the economic slump hitting the United States and much of the world, there were few who seemed to view this as a serious failure of the economics profession.
#1 state people are fleeing – New York
“We’re seeing one of the lowest mobility rates in a century,” says Nathaniel Karp, chief economist for banking firm BBVA Compass. Karp says the recession has forced many people to stay put because they are unable to sell their homes, cannot find jobs or are unwilling to relocate for work if it means sacrificing a partner’s stable position.
China has the next real estate bubble waiting to be popped
With property prices soaring in key cities, many investors and bankers worry that China has the next great real estate bubble waiting to be popped. The Chinese government is worried, too. On Sunday, the nation’s cabinet, citing “excessively rising house prices” in some cities, said it will monitor capital flows to “stop overseas speculative funds from jeopardizing China’s property market.” It also said that any Chinese family buying a second home must make a down payment of at least 40 percent.
Unemployed have picked up other forms of labor
Nearly 1 in 10 members of the American work force are unemployed — a level not seen in 27 years.
Without a paying job, these Americans have picked up other forms of labor: vacuuming the house, sending out résumés, taking classes and caring for family. And the unemployed have more time for leisure and socializing.
Continue reading… “How The Day Stacks Up For The Unemployed”
Climate change is the biggest health threat facing doctors this century, the first medical assessment of the dangers of global warming has warned.
Continue reading… “Climate Change Biggest Health Threat This Century”
Estimates of how much crude oil we have extracted from the planet vary wildly. Now, UK researchers have published a new estimate in the International Journal of Oil, Gas and Coal Technology that suggests we may have used more than we think.
Banning fast food advertisements from children’s television programs would reduce the number of overweight children in the U.S. by 18 percent and decrease the number of overweight teens by 14 percent, economists have estimated in a new study.
Continue reading… “Childhood Obesity And Fast Food Commercials Linked”