A deeply divided Thailand with political divisions between the northeast around Chiang Mai and the Bangkok region

12/03/2013

Yingluck and Thaksin Shinawatra are from the northeast of Thailand and get most of their support from this region. The Bangkok region, military, courts and business remain opposed to a transfer of power to the provinces and the policies of Shinawatra. SHinawatra's policies favor the rural areas and the newly emerging middle class in the north. The struggle is as much a social phenomenon from the economic progress of the last 2 decades in Thailand as it is a struggle for a sharing of power, say experts.

Linked Articles

Economic Realignment Fuels Regional Political Divisions in Thailand

New York Times 12/03/2013

Thomas Fuller, Thomas, Fuller

New York Times 12/03/2013

Thomas Fuller, Thomas, Fuller

Stanford Hoover Institution's Fouad Ajami on the Middle East policies of U.S. president Obama that led to sectarian conflict and increase in terrorism

10/24/2013

Without a residual U.S. presence in the Middle East acting as a restraining influence on Shiite militias, Sunni groups, other foreign powers, leading to an exacerbation of sectarian conflict by the Malliki government, created the conditions for the rise of terrorism. Only in 2015-2016 were the effects of this seen with the breakup of Syria and Iraq, and the millions of refugees making their way to Turkey, Jordan, and Europe, followed by the increase in terrorism in Europe and the U.S.

Linked Articles

Notable & Quotable: Fouad Ajami on the Sunni-Shiite Fight

Wall Street Journal 01/05/2016

Fouad Ajami, Fouad, Ajami

Wall Street Journal 10/24/2013

Fouad Ajami, Fouad, Ajami

Getting economic policy right- A second look at Japan, the European Union and the U.S. in 2014-2015

06/09/2013

In taking a second look, economists Stiglitz and Krugman ask if much derided Japan has avoided the worst effects of unemployment that have affected Spain, Italy, Greece, and France in the eurozone, and for the the long term unemployed in the U.S. And in doing so also avoided the widening income and wealth gaps opened up in the other industrialized countries.

Linked Articles

Apologizing to Japan

New York Times 10/30/2014

Paul Krugman, Paul, Krugman

New York Times 06/09/2013

Joseph E. Stiglitz, Joseph, E., Stiglitz

Jeb Bush- the campaign issues of restoring social and economic mobility for all, immigration, and 4% economic growth

03/16/2013

Linked Articles

Jeb Bush: The Road to Republican Revival

Wall Street Journal 03/16/2013

Jeb Bush, Jeb, Bush

Wall Street Journal 04/07/2014

Brody Mullins, Brody, Mullins

Setting the record straight and restoring the credibility of credit ratings- the U.S. Justice Department's struggle with S&P 2013-2015

02/05/2013

U.S. Associate Attorney General Dillery, the governments top negotiator in a $1.5 billion settlement in Jan 2015, says never has the Justice Department produced 290 million documents in discovery in Justice Department history.This is how many documents were produced in this case which he said showed S&P in serious breach of duty, which affected the U.S. financial system leading to many adverse consequences.

Linked Articles

S&P to Pay $1.5 Billion to Resolve Crisis-Era Litigation

Wall Street Journal 02/04/2015

Timothy Martin And Andrew Grossmann, Timothy, Martin, And, Andrew, Grossmann

New York Times 02/05/2013

Mary Williams Walsh, Mary, Williams, Walsh, Ron Nixon, Ron, Nixon

The LNG ship Prelude and the oil drilling rig Noble Bully 1- New technology changing the prospects and look of deep water oil drilling making it safer, cost effective and increasing production

01/03/2013

Shell's experience and technological improvements are changing the way oil drilling in deep waters is done. Chevron and other companies are also developing their expertise as this is critical in reaching the more difficult to access reserves deep in the ocean floor.

Linked Articles

A Novel Ship Extends Shell's Reach

Wall Street Journal 01/03/2013

Steven Rosenbush, Steven, Rosenbush

Wall Street Journal 01/29/2014

Justin Scheck, Justin, Scheck

U.S. Fed chairman Bernanke's activist interest rate policies to tackle high unemployment and central bankers from MIT

12/12/2012

A pragmatic activist focus in economic thinking shaped at the MIT economics department in Cambridge, Masachusetts. The ECB's Mario Draghi, Bank of England's Mervyn King, and Bernanke shaped their thinking at MIT. Draghi and Bernanke had the same PhD. advisor- Stanley Fischer. Factors calling for a pragmatic approach include the lack of political agreement on th deficit, the housing and foreclosure crisis effects, higher inequality and unemployment effects on the middle class, the effects of the globalized economy on working class manufacturing jobs, people dropping out of the labor foce, and lower inflation, which called for a larger focus on unemployment. Bernanke emphasized the "enormous waste in human potential and productive resources of the economy" throughout 2009-2012. Draghi emphasized the abnormal nature of excessive borrowing interest rates for Italy and Spain during the ECB's bond buying efforts in 2011-2012. Both efforts had a stabilizing effect on the economies of the U.S. and Europe during a period of political discord about future policy.

Linked Articles

Fed Ties Rates to Joblessness

Wall Street Journal 12/13/2012

Jon Hilsenrath, Jon, Hilsenrath, Kristina Peterson, Kristina, Peterson

Wall Street Journal 12/12/2012

Jon Hilsenrath, Jon, Hilsenrath

The new Jinping-Keqiang leadership and reducing pharmaceutical and healthcare costs to help consumers in China (1)

10/03/2012

After a decade of decline in consumer spending in favor of infrastructure spending to where it is now only 35% of GDP, or half that in the U.S. as a percentage of GDP, China's leadership realizes the need to help consumers. It is seen as high on the list of priorities for the Party's survival. Ordinary Chinese, rural households and the elderly are seriously affected by the high cost of healthcare and the need to set aside a large portion of savings for medical emergencies (Orlik). This further depresses consumer after the impact of low savings rates. With a bursting of the property bubble the money depositors shifted to real estate is also at risk for middle class investors.

Linked Articles

Rebalancing a Divided China

Wall Street Journal 10/03/2012

Tom Orlik, Tom, Orlik

Wall Street Journal 07/25/2013

John Bussey, John, Bussey

How keeping seniors as a protected class in current Social Security proposals impacts the young and leads to shrinking investments in defense, social programs, research, education and infrastructure

08/16/2012

This includes the Republican Paul Ryan proposal which also stays away from touching Social Security for today's seniors and passes on the costs to the young. Democrats are using demagoguery and intimidation on this issue. Samuelson cites CBO estimates which show that even with shrinking defense and nondiscretionary spending by a third the U.S. deficit would still be 6.75% of GDP in 2023.

Linked Articles

Robert Samuelson: Ryan’s budget asks nothing of the elderly -; unfortunately - The Washington Post

Washington Post 08/16/2012

Robert Samuelson, Robert, Samuelson

Washington Post 08/16/2012

Editorial

Spain macroprudential supervision of its banking system once lauded now turns out to be "timid" and false, could the same be true for China?

07/18/2012

Spain's central bank had a reputation of providing good supervision for Spain's banking system. The problems at the Cajas Savings banks and the current assessment after the request for $125 billion in EU funds for Spain's banks shows how this turned out to be false. Does China face a similiar problem with its housing bubble. The U.S., UK and Spain, failed to control and manage the effects of a housing bubble, can China be a lone exception? Rapid growth enabled China to cope with bad loans in the banking system, with slower growth, a weak European market for exports, and a stimulus that is about one eighth the size in annual investment- one trillion yuan over 4 years in the current stimulus compared to 4 trillion over 2009-2010 in the last stimulus plan. Can China manage this bubble, does it have the experience managing this type of problem or has it papered over the problems as Spain did? This has repercussions for industries and countries from the export sector in Germany, Australia and Brazil to industries such as the German automobile industry, and companies such as Caterpillar.

Linked Articles

As China’s economy slows, real estate bubble looms - The Washington Post

Washington Post 10/03/2012

Jia Lynn Yang, Jia, Lynn, Yang

Wall Street Journal 07/18/2012

Christopher Bjork, Christopher, Bjork, David Román, David, Román

Torrelodones, Castilla La Mancha and the effort to clean up accounts in local government in Spain

06/25/2012

Wasteful spending, cronyism, corruption and lack of transparency in local government marked the years of the construction and real estate boom in Spain. Now grassroots efforts are taking place across Spain to clean up accounts, ensure transparency, and divert wasted resources to meet vital needs. Similiar efforts are taking place from Thessaloniki, Greece, to Sicily, Italy, as Europ faced with high unemployment and austerity cuts comes up with its own efforts for renewal from the bottom up setting the political elites aside.

Linked Articles

Europe's Recession Sparks Grass-Roots Political Push

Wall Street Journal 05/21/2013

Ilan Brat, Ilan, Brat, Christopher Bjork, Christopher, Bjork

Wall Street Journal 06/25/2012

Sara Schaefer Muñoz, Sara, Schaefer, Muñoz

Obama and election advisor Plouffe- responsible governance, Simpson-Bowles and an election imprint on "everything"

05/26/2012

A White House aide says election advisor David Plouffe's influence affected "everything" in the Obama White House. Tom Friedman points to the influence of campaign consultants on the White House as overreaching and pervasive, going so far a to describe the campaign being developed in test tube fashion. Karl Rove pointed to president Obama keeping an eye on reelection 18 months before Nov. 6, 2012, as not a positive development. Friedman specifically mentions president Obama's failure to endorse the Simpson-Bowles commssion on deficit reductions as part of the imprint of election advisors because reducing tax expenditures or deductions might prove politically unpopular. Yet this was part of responsible governance to take on unpopular positions- something other presidents, including Democratic president Truman, did not fail to do choosing instead to educate pubic opiion on difficult steps needing to be taken. Truman took the decisions head on such as confronting the soviets in Greece and other parts of Europe and in Korea after the fall of the Iron Curtain, so soon after a major war when the public was weary of conflict.

Linked Articles

Obama Adviser's Strategy Is High Risk, High Reward

Wall Street Journal 10/31/2012

Carol E. Lee, Carol, E., Lee

New York Times 05/26/2012

Thomas L. Friedman, Thomas, L., Friedman

De Anza College in Cupertino, California where a Apple co-founder got his start and the implications of tax avoidance strategies

04/28/2012

A U.S. Senate Report in May 2013 points to tax avoidance strategies by Apple, and Apple CEO Tim Cook appears before a Senate hearing. EU leaders meet in Brussels to address the problems of tax avoidance by digital companies which aggravate the budget deficits of EU countries, especially at a time of cutbacks in infrastructure spending and education that supports the digital companies access to to human resources. De Anza College in Cupertino is where on of the Apple cofounders went to school. The head of the college describes the effects of cutbacks in funding on the college. On the other side of the Atlantic Fredrik Reinfeldt, Sweden's prime minister makes a similiar case saying the digital companies need access to infrastructure and educational centres which makes the payment of taxes used to fund this necessary for the whole system not to fall into dysfunction.

Linked Articles

Apple's Tax Strategy Aims at Low-Tax States and Nations

New York Times 04/28/2012

Charles Duhigg, Charles, Duhigg, David Kocieniewski, David, Kocieniewski

Wall Street Journal 05/22/2013

Gabriele Steinhauser, Gabriele, Steinhauser, Sam Schechner, Sam, Schechner