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This is an highly important interview by the BBC with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer. We have followed the path breaking work of Mr. Lighthizer at Lyrarc.com over 10 years, and have great respect for his effort on behalf of the American people and American workers. Here are some of the remarks he made at the end of the term of the Trump administration. Lighthizer says the objective of trade is not just efficiency, it must be working men and women. This is the shift that Mr. Trump has made. It will be a lasting change as leaders in both parties see this as important, says Lighthizer. There are companies that immediately want to go back to the way things were but Lighthizer says members of both parties will prevent this. This will be a lasting change. Democrats in particular could soon face strident criticism that they have let down the working class from within their party, increasing the risks of the party to represent large parts of the American population. Lighthizer says its not accurate that we started a lot of trade wars, we have simply enforced our laws and insisted on fairness for American workers. There was really no trade war in the improved NAFTA deal in the interests of American workers, which also enhanced worker protections in Mexico, for a win-win on both sides of two neighbors. "We want strong communities in the U.S. and if that means T-shirts will cost another nickel, they will cost another nickel," sums up the way Lighthizer sees it, and the way all of America would see it if one regained the idea of government for the people, of the people and with the people. "We are proud of what we have done to reorient American trade towards working people in the U.S. and less towards outsourcing and corporations," says Lighthizer. And he says that was important to do. Lighthizer only highly underestimates what he has done for America and American workers.  A lot remains to be done. The about $800 billion in overall trade deficit the U.S. has with China, Germany and the rest of the world is not sustainable, he says. The job only gets harder now that the direction is clear.    ...

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US president Biden signs a broad executive order on July 9, that is directed at promoting competitive behaviour in the American economy, and taking action against companies that have anti competitive behaviours. It also aims to limit corporate dominance that then can lead to anti competitive behaviours. These types of behaviours puts consumers, workers and small compoanies at a disadvantage. The Biden plan stretches from the smaller items such as hearing aids and baggage fees, to the task of putting in place the first antitrust regulation on tech companies Apple, Google, Amazon and others. Industries Biden sees as needing help are agriculture, healthcare, shipping, transportation, technology, and labor practices that limit wages and mobility. In making the executive order the White House says it "will lower prices for families, increase wages for workers and promote innovation and even faster economic growth." As each step is taken by the Biden administration to help workers, families, women and children, the situation is a reminder of the actions taken by Franklin Delano Roosevelt at another period of crisis in the nation's history. The July 9 executive order will create a Competition Council as proposed by Tim Wu, special assistant to the president for technology and competition policy in the White House National Economic Council. The Compeititon Council task will be to get federal agencies to take action to promote competitive behaviours for the first time since the 1980's when Republican presidents Reagan, Bush, and Democratic presidents Clinton, Obama, allowed such behaviours in some industries to get entrenched. In Biden's own words "the rise of monopolies weaken labor." In each industry agencies will now have the task of pushing back against anti-competitive behaviours already put in place by companies. In agriculture it will help small farmers, in pharmaceutical sector it will help the American people deal with a problem that has no end in sight of high drug prices and practices that support this. In all areas of the economy the Biden plan is for a new coordinated effort across all the agencies of the government and under the leadership of the president, to restore the vibrant economy to what it was before the long deterioration through anti-competitive behaviours. ...

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Yaroslav Trofimov gives his reflections on what the war means for Russia in this Essay in WSJ, and the sense within Russia that the war itself was a mistake. A result of miscalculations and a result that leaves Russia in no way better than it was in 2021 before the conflict. Hard won economic gains achieved by Mr. Putin during the last two decades have in fact been compromised by the conflict. No discussion has even been done on the transition away from fossil fuels that have been accelerated by the conflict. This is particularly relevant for Russia where the question of redundant fossil fuel assets during the rapid transition to renewable energy is a problem that needs to be tackled. The Ukraine diversion in this way affects the Russian economy and acts as a distraction from important economic goals. Global public opinion is also affected in ways that do not look favorable for Russia the longer the war goes on particularly the effect on food insecurity in poor countries, and energy security in Europe for poor households, the senseless destruction of infrastructure in Ukraine and millions of women and children displaced, all creating a sense of overwhelming moral failure. Mr. Modi of India is reported by FR24 to have told Mr. Putin at a meeting on September 15 that "this is no time for war." This is shown on today's pages in Lyrarc. How could it be a time for war when the pandemic has taken lives of over 1 million people in the US, over 2 million in Europe, millions in Asia, Latin America and Africa, and the world is only now coming out of it. The competition is not between countries for major power status but between countries on achieving better lives for its people, stronger economies, and better job, health, infrastructure and services to ordinary people, tackling problems on a common basis such as climate change. In most situations even the advanced countries of North America and Europe are facing the same problems faced by middle income countries such as China,Russia, and developing countries such as India- how to combine market economy with State participation in the economy and government ensuring fairness to all, better distribution of incomes and wealth, ensuring that there is a level playing field for all and opportunities for all. ...

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As with so much in life too much of anything is bad. Obsession for dealing with inequality without grasping the potential of new technology and people with skills, has hurt both China and India, with both moving to correct this in the last 20 years. Allowing too much inequality disturbs the balance in society damaging democratic processes and creating new dangers for democratic processes.  Today Piketty, and other Western and Asian leaders are presenting the argument for fairer societies principally because this is the only way to generate the kind of cycle for growth seen after the second  world war in the 1940's, 1950's and 1960's  following FDR and Truman, De Gaulle and Adenauer. At some point the curve for growth simply drops with extreme disparities in society- something that happened with disastrous consequences in the history of China and India in the 1500's and the long descent into colonial or semi-colonial rule. That pattern is documented in Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations. And it is a drop no nation or society would want to repeat because of the immense suffering, and the decline of Asian societies in a social and cultural sense, leading to a closed outlook to science in general and knowledge accumulation behaviours based on scientific observation of Nature over the course of the 17th to 19th century.  Some traces of this in the early stages are evident in the US and Europe which is why all well meaning people and people of goodwill for their countries seek a way out of this endless fracturing, the rural-urban divide, the society blind and morally neutral views of tech, and the starving of resources which benefit the broad segments of society for infrastructure, health and education through the misallocation of resources to other places. In the long run what is important is not the long theories which can fail, but to "Just Do," follow good common sense, do the right thing as Modi has done for women in essentials such as water, toilets, cooking gas, digital bank accounts, dignity, safety, access to education. And what Xi is attempting to do for Common Prosperity in China. And what Biden and Scholz are setting out to do in the US and Germany. ...

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His full statement, which he posted on X, is below: "My Fellow Americans, over the past three-and-a-half years, we have made great progress as a nation. "Today, America has the strongest economy in the world. We've made historic investments in rebuilding our nation, in lowering prescription drug costs for seniors, and in expanding affordable health care to a record number of Americans. "We've provided critically needed care to a million veterans exposed to toxic substances. Passed the first gun safety law in 30 years. Appointed the first African American woman to the Supreme Court. And passed the most significant climate legislation in the history of the world. America has never been better positioned to lead than we are today. "I know none of this could have been done without you, the American people. Together, we overcame a once in a century pandemic and the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. We've protected and preserved our democracy. And we've revitalised and strengthened our alliances around the world. "It has been the greatest honour of my life to serve as your President. And while it has been my intention to seek re-election, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term. "I will speak to the nation later this week in more detail about my decision. ...

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Germany recorded 9% growth, in the second quarter of 2010. Martin Wansleben, managing director of Germany's Chamber of Commerce and Industry, says the recovery pace is too fast and unsustainable. The spurt in growth may be shortlived and was mainly a result of a surge in exports to Asian markets. The countries that benefited from this growth are in Northern and Eastern Europe. France recorded 2.5% growth, Austria and the Netherlands 3.5% growth. Eastern European countries that help Germany export also did well, with Slovakia at 5% and Czech Republic at 3% growth. By contrast Southern European countries, Greece, Portugal, Spain, and countries like Ireland have not benefited. German growth has not resulted in markets for other countries as German consumer spending is tight. See the link to the expansion of the low-wage sector in Germany and the downside of this; with average wages actually falling in Germany in recent years.

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It is important to remember that Republicans Wendell Wilkie who ran in 1940 and Dewey in 1944 and 1948, Eisenhower in 1952, 1956, all adopted the worker protections for safety, hours and wages, and the employment stabilization programs set up by Perkins for the two Roosevelts- Republican Teddy Roosevelt who gave her her start 1911 and Democrat Franklin Roosevelt 1924-1944. Basically it setup what we call the Modern World where America was the model of modern industrialization for the whole World. Important to remember as Labor and Capital go through a reaffirmation of the principles guiding same issues that dogged America before. The Frances Perkins Exhibit at Columbia University in 2010 showed the most influential woman for the lives of ordinary American citizens and workers, workers families and children, for three decades 1920's to the 1950's. The first woman to serve as a key member of the cabinet. One who guided the legislation that set up the structure in which labor and capital each participated equally in the economic structure of modern America. Perkins was educated at Mount Holyoke College which had Corinthians 1 15  as motto "Be ye steadfast." She got her Masters degree in Economics and Sociology from Columbia University. She studied economics at University of Pennsylvania before going to Columbia University.  She is the only member of the cabinet who served not just all 12 years from1932 to 1944 under Franklin Roosevelt, but also before that from 1924 to 1932 for NY Governors Al Smith and Roosevelt, and before that for Teddy Roosevelt as head of the Committee on Public Safety in 1911. When Harry Truman followed FDR Perkins asked to run the Social Security administration, was made Civil Service Commissioner in 1944. She lectured at Cornell University during the Eisenhower administration.  ...

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Netflix offers paid parental leave for upto 1 year in a fluid arrangement that lets parents decide how they want to do it, when they want to return to work, and when to take time off. This offers the flexibility to do this without having to worry about work or finances, a stated goal of the company.

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Von Mark Schieritz of Germany's Zeit Online describes the changes underway following the election campaigns in the U.S., and France, and the Brexit vote in Britain, all signalling the discontent of people left behind by the tech, capitalism, trade and globalization changes of the last two decades. The appeal of one time fringe politicians using racist slogans and divisive rhetoric to appeal to those left behind, appealing to people lacking intergenerational mobility, and without much hope for a better future, is a serious concern. People who are gullible enough, lack college education, or racially isolated so that they are not likely to look carefully at what is being offered in terms of programs and change of competing parties, and likely to overlook the hard and difficult road for corrective course of action, because of anger and pentup fears. Schieritz cites as part of this change the unanimously approved conclusion in its final declaration at the G-20 meeting in Chengdu, China- "The benefits of growth need to be shared more broadly within and among countries to promote inclusiveness." Yet this can be a sort of "too little, too late."  Bankers who are cited in an email going around Wall Street lack credibility with groups on Main Street, to people adversely affected by tech, trade and globalization changes that have been persistently ignored for over a decade, close to two decades. More convincing is the tone of Theresa May, the British prime minister's first statement outside 10 Downing Street- who spoke of the "burning injustices" and her determination to make this a top priority of her government. Still more convincing are the programs to invest $275 billion over 10 years in infrastructure put forward by the leading candidate in the U.S. presidential election of 2016, to provide easier access to public universities and colleges to those left behind, as a sure way to create new jobs and address intergenerational mobility. In fact every leading candidate had made the loss of upward mobility their central plank already in 2015, long before Trump and Sanders started their campaign. The real hope lies in western leaders Merkel, May, and Clinton, all keenly aware students of changes, all women by the way who have sensed the injustice and have the ability to come up with something new and promising for the future, after learning the lessons of the past. ...

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Italy's prime minister Berlusconi is changing the terms of the 45.15 billion euro austerity package after political protests. He has to weigh what is doable in the political context with demands from the European Central Bank, which is buying Italian bonds to prevent a surge in borrowing rates for Italy. The new measures as the old package unraveled are: an increase in the value added tax to 21% from 20%, increasing the retirement age for women in the private sector to 65 from 60 in 2014, two years earlier than expected, and a 3% tax on Italians earning above 300,000 euros annually. The street protesters in Bolgna, Milan Rome and other cities, protested that the earlier package unfairly put the burden on the working class. The cuts in local government spending in the earlier package would have impacted spending on items such as nurseries for children, drawing protests from teachers. The debate on an equitable sharing of the burden of reducing deficits is ocurring both in the U.S. and Europe, especially with high unemployment and lack of economic growth....

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Greek unemployment is up to 11% and this does not reflect the women who are not registering as unemployed. About 100,000 public sector workers will be let go by 2013 as the austeity plan takes effect. The three year reform programme from the IMF, the European Commission and the ECB tries to cut the budget deficit from 13.6% to 2.7% of GDP in a quick three years even as the econmy is shrinking. The criticism of Germany is relatively less, but there is strong resentment in Greece for the IMF program with 60% of Greeks opposing it. And in Germany Merkel faces voter resentment of having to pay for other EU member countries mistakes in the election in North Rhine-Westphalia, where her CDU and FDP coalition faces a tough challenge. Intenationally Merkel is facing tough criticism for waffling as the euro currency faced a serious threat. The whole European Union plan was being put to the test resulting in the size of the bailout growing from $60 billon to $160 billion in a few weeks, many experts calling it ineptitude....

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Study showing the ineffectiveness of mammograms in correctly screening for cancer. The technology is not developed enough for correct detection. Many doctors are compensated on the basis of having all patients screened.

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Glaxo and its experience with Lamictal. How is Glaxo handling the marketing of this drug that can cause birth defects if taken by pregnant women.

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In this exceptional report from Monrovia and the countryside, NYT's Helene Cooper shows why the Ebola outbreak could occur in Liberia. Basic healthcare, functioning schools, electricity and running water were all scarce in Liberia following the civil war and military misrule in the country. Liberia was barely recovering from the severe breakdown when the Ebola outbreak occurred in 2014.

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The huge changes for upward mobility and women taking place in India can be seen in the way 19 year old Mumtaz, daughter of vegetable cart vendor Qasier Jahan, found a place in India's World Cup Women's Junior Hockey team. She is the third biggest scorer in the Junior World Cup and made the courageous goal for India to set the tone for a 3-0 win over South Korea in quarter finals. Mumtaz is from Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, which is going through huge changes as development accelerates and new infrastructure is built. 

Athletic coaches saw her ability in sprints at a school competition in Agra which led to their encouraging and supporting her to play hockey. Lacking resources to buy even a hockey kit coaches stepped up and helped the young girl play, learn new skills, and compete in national hockey.