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Deep differences in 2015 between Alexis Tsipras of Syriza and the Merkel government in Germany on debt forgiveness and the bailouts for Greece
01/26/2015
The deep differences between Greeks and Merkel operate at two levels. On the level of austerity policies Greece shares the view with other EU countries, the governments of Hollande in France and Renzi in Italy that austerity is not the best course for the eurozone. This view is also shared by people in Spain facing unemployment exceeding 20%, though the government of Rajoy in Spain like that of Samaras in Greece lived with the austerity policies with some changes. At this level there is also support from within Merkel's coalition government from Social Democrats. The other level of deep differences is on debt forgiveness and bailouts where Greece has to find its own way out in negotiations hoping that the EU and the IMF will agree to make concessions based on action taken by Syriza to ensure prudence in fianncial management. On issues such as minimum wage one would expect Syriza to be firm and make concessions where the hardship does not fall on the poorer and working class, winning support from the Social Democrats in Merkel's coalition. Beyond the symbolic moves and posturing the actual negotiations are likely to take into account the eurozone's need for help on the fiscal side desired by the ECB's Draghi to support monetary easing to fight deflation, and the need to keep the eurozone intact at a sensitive time. Syriza for its part is aware that a majority of Greeks favor staying in the eurozone.
Linked Articles
Greece’s new prime minister wants Germany to pay for Nazi war crimes - The Washington Post
Washington Post 01/26/2015
A young, impatient leftist is Greece’s defiant new face - The Washington PostWashington Post 01/27/2015
Looking back at Hong Kong and China today and yesterday- China in 1842 and in 1945, nationalism and commercial interests of foreign powers
01/09/2015
A wariness with foreign powers in China stems from the influences left behind from the British commercial interests and the Japanese invasion of China. Compared to that period, the period of collaboration on an equal footing and playing field is is a short and recent one that has taken place for just three decades 1985-2015. Fears that the accelerated development in China could slow down without a strong central government, combine with the awareness of the need for western technology and open communications in today's global economy to accelerate the development, create in the Chinese mind a problem that needs to be tackled carefully to continue progress. Awareness of the huge inequalities and corruption in the rush towards modernization, need to tackle extensive contamination of air and water, and need for social security and healthcare for an aging population create a new urgency for careful policy making to sustain progress.
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 01/12/2015
‘China 1945,’ by Richard BernsteinNew York Times 01/09/2015
The miscalculations and missteps of Russian president Putin in 2014 leading to a major crisis for the Russian economy in 2015
12/18/2014
A major miscalculation was totally misjudging Merkel and post-war German public opinion about policies that remind people about the period between the two World Wars- this is anathema to Germans who see the European Union as a way to build a new and different Europe. The other miscalculation was on how a foreign adventurous policy in Syria would affect Sunni world opinion, in particular Saudi Arabia. Just as Brezhnev took Russia into Afghanistan where Russia had no vital interest leading to eventual Soviet collapse, Putin risked alienating a key member in OPEC pricing moves and hurting Russia's economic interest. By not listening to Kudrin, the head of Sberbank, and other economic advisers from the first and second terms of the Putin-Medvedev administrations, Putin opened the door to two years of serious missteps, risking the very real accomplishments of the first and second term of creating a stable growing Russian economy with close economic ties to Europe. The only positive outcome of the crisis and low oil prices would be making the shift away from oil dependence, which was talked about but never seriously attempted in the Putin administrations. For this to happen major new investments would have to be made and technology links to the outside strengthened, both hammered by the missteps in 2013-2014. The irony of all this is that Putin gained the support of rural Russians in the countryside in the 2012 presidential elections by promising no return to the economic crisis conditions following earlier ruble collapses. Now by ignoring Kudrin and other wiser counsel from the first and second administrations he does just that.
Linked Articles
Putin’s Year of Defiance and Miscalculation
Wall Street Journal 12/18/2014
Russian President Vladimir Putin Seeks to Reassure on EconomyWall Street Journal 12/18/2014
The 56% of student loans that are being repaid to the government and the government not correctly reflecting its liabilities
10/17/2014
Studies by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York are cited by authors of the op-ed in WSJ, showing 56% of student loans are being repaid to the government.
Linked Articles
Student-Loan Debt: A Federal Toxic Asset
Wall Street Journal 10/17/2014
Student Loan Debt and Counting Liabilities as AssetsWall Street Journal 10/17/2014
The deteriorating situation for the U.S. long term unemployed and workers seeking fulltime but stuck in part time low paying jobs
04/04/2014
By March 2014 about 6 years after the 2008 financial crisis 7.4 million workers could not find full time work.
Linked Articles
It's Still Bad for the Long Term Unemployed
New York Times 04/04/2014
The Decline of WorkWall Street Journal 04/05/2014
A call for increasing the minimum wage from 600 American economists saying this will help 28 million working age Americans, most disproportionately women
02/08/2014
Linked Articles
The Case for a Higher Minimum Wage
New York Times 02/08/2014
Over 600 Economists Sign Letter In Support of $10.10 Minimum Wage: Economist Statement on the Federal Minimum Wage | Economic Policy InstituteUnknown 02/09/2014
Faces the U.S. Federal Reserve's Janet Yellen will have in mind as she shapes Fed policies
01/23/2014
The long term unemployed will shape Yellen's thinking on Fed policy in 2014-2015, especially men of working age.
Linked Articles
More Men in Prime Working Ages Don't Have Jobs
Wall Street Journal 02/06/2014
Don’t Expect Job Data Alone to Persuade Fed on RatesNew York Times 01/23/2014
Low wages for workers at retail branches of banks and fast-food retail outlets
12/04/2013
Linked Articles
Low bank wages costing the public millions, report says - The Washington Post
Washington Post 12/04/2013
Fast-food workers plan a new wave of walkouts across the nation - The Washington PostWashington Post 12/04/2013
Creating friendly livable urban space- the work of Amazon, Google and Twitter in Seattle, San Francisco and Chicago
08/25/2013
Linked Articles
Twitter Helps Revive a Seedy San Francisco Neighborhood
New York Times 11/01/2013
As Amazon Stretches, Seattleâs Downtown Is ReshapedNew York Times 08/25/2013
Poverty and hunger for the working poor in Britain's post industrial north- 2009-2014
08/20/2013
Food charities working in Africa now concentrate their efforts in Britain's post industrial northern towns.
Linked Articles
As the Working Poor Become More Common in Britain, So Does Hunger
New York Times 01/02/2014
U.K. Moves To Tackle Income SqueezeWall Street Journal 08/20/2013
Emilio Lozoya, new CEO of Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex), and one of the toughest jobs in the business world
08/18/2013
The challenges facing Lozoya at Pemex and the execution following the new oil law that could promise a brighter future for Mexico.
Linked Articles
Mexico's Pemex Looks to Tap U.S. Shale
Wall Street Journal 08/18/2013
Pemex CEO: Mexican Energy Overhaul Opens OpportunityWall Street Journal 12/14/2013
The Egyptian military and Gen. Sissi's rejection of the E.U. envoy Bernardino Leon's deal for a peaceful removal of Morsi protester camps followed by talks and new elections
08/15/2013
Burns, Leon and the foreign ministers of Qatar and the UAE arranged the deal which was supported by El Baradei and then rejected by Gen. Sissi leading to the violent military crackdown and 525 dead on Aug. 14, 2013.
Linked Articles
U.S. allies were near a deal for peaceful end to Egypt crisis - The Washington Post
Washington Post 08/17/2013
Egyptâs Blood, Americaâs ComplicityNew York Times 08/15/2013
Microsoft and the risks in having directors serve on Boards for long periods of time
07/16/2013
The problems of the lack of new energy and new ideas, and the lack of younger members with fresh perspectives.
Linked Articles
Microsoft Board Shows Little Taste for Bold Choice in CEO
Wall Street Journal 09/02/2013
The 40-Year Club: America's Longest-Serving DirectorsWall Street Journal 07/16/2013
The challenges facing K-12 education in the U.S. in 2015 with a larger proportion of children from less affluent and poor backgrounds, and two thirds of American children failing math and reading proficiency required levels in 8th grade for 2015
01/17/2015
With a majority of children in California, Texas, and some midwestern states in the U.S. from less affluent or poor backgrounds, and about two thirds of all American students failiing to meet required proficiency in math and reading at 8th grade, the educational challenge of of creating a well qualified work force to build America's future is daunting. Eight years of policy changes in education and private efforts have failed to produce adequate results.
Linked Articles
U.S. student performance slips on national test - The Washington Post
Washington Post 10/28/2015
Majority of U.S. public school students are in poverty - The Washington PostWashington Post 01/17/2015
The case for a minimum wage for U.S. workers with families to support- how Australia approaches the issue taking into account the median wage
12/31/2014
Australia's minimum wage is 54% of the median wage, compared to 38% for the U.S., according to the OECD. Australia's wage setting body sets the minimum wage for workers over 20 years of age, and takes into account the median wage in the interest of fairness. Workers with families to support need the Australian minimum wage of 16.87 Australian dollars ($13 U.S.). All of this money goes into consumer spending providing an immediate boost to the economy.
Linked Articles
Australia Weighs Whether Its Minimum Wage Is Too High
Wall Street Journal 01/26/2015
States’ Minimum Wages Rise, Helping Millions of WorkersNew York Times 12/31/2014
Abenomics advisers Yamamoto and Hamada, and Japanese prime minister Abe's decision in Nov. 2014 to challenge the Finance Ministry's views
11/20/2014
Abe calls for a snap election in Dec. 2014 after delaying the second increase in the consumption tax from 8% to 10% in 2015. About 53% of the Japanese public opposed the doubling of the consumption tax by 2015 in 2011 poll as the DPJ party Noda administration pushed for it on the advice of the Finance Ministry. Now after the 3rd quarter showed Japan in a recession over 70% of the Japanese public oppose a second increase in the consumption tax to 10% from 8% in 2015. Abenomics advisors Hamada and Yamamoto now say this increase in the tax (especially when wages are only gradually increasing) was never a part of the Abenomics.
Linked Articles
Japan’s No. 1 Reflationist Does a Victory Dance
Wall Street Journal 11/20/2014
With Bad Economic News for Japan, Abe’s Magic Seems to EvaporateNew York Times 11/20/2014
The ways in which the Modi administration can accelerate growth in India (2) - rapid technology adoption and the synergy between new technologies, human resources and invested capital
05/17/2014
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 05/17/2014
Tata Consultancy Services CEO Welcomes Narendra Modi ElectionWall Street Journal 05/19/2014
Ukraine's crisis of poor governance- the new role of civic activists and young people in 2016
03/22/2014
Linked Articles
Economist 04/19/2016
EU Faces Difficult Choices Over UkraineWall Street Journal 03/22/2014
Faces of workers quitting work or reducing hours as they qualify for subsidies on health insurance under the Obama Healthcare Law
02/05/2014
Faces of the workers taking subsidies available to lower income workers under the Obama Health Care Law. The Congressional Budget Office projections for 2021 show about the equivalent of 2.3 million workers worth of hours reduced as a result of the healthcare law subsidies giving workers more choice. Many use the time to work on startup business or child care for grandchildren. The jobs freed up and the hours could be taken up by other workers looking for jobs. Gains in childcare would be another result.
Linked Articles
Health Law To Cut Into Labor Force
Wall Street Journal 02/05/2014
They quit their jobs, thanks to the health law - The Washington PostWashington Post 02/09/2014
South Africa's Mandela's willingness to challenge established bias, restraint and generosity of spirit
12/09/2013
Ross Sorkin gives the example of Mandela changing his thinking on nationalization when confronted with the facts and Friedman points out Mandela's vision in giving whites a sense of pride in the new South Africa. Friedman goes further to compare this with the effort to get just enough votes to win elections, zip code by zip code using computer generated data on demographics and other parameters, that he sees in the U.S..
Linked Articles
How Mandela Shifted Views on Freedom of Markets
New York Times 12/09/2013
Why Mandela Was UniqueNew York Times 12/10/2013
Liu He, top economic advisor to president Jinping, and Zhou Xiaochuan, head of the People's Bank of China, push for deposit insurance and private banks in China
10/30/2013
Deposit insurance and private banks to support lending to new private enterprises moves to the top of China's agenda and priorities in 2013 for the Jinping-Keqiang administration.
Linked Articles
China's Central Banker Leads Push to Overhaul Economy
Wall Street Journal 11/05/2013
China Think Tank Offers Reform Wish ListWall Street Journal 10/30/2013
A black law student at the University of Brasilia, a Harvard trained law graduate in Curitiba, and others changing Brazil's legal system
08/23/2013
Barbosa is one of eight children of a bricklayer in Minas Gerais, now Chief Justice in Brasilia. Dallagnol is a Harvard trained graduate who is working with other prosecutors in Curitiba, a provincial city, investigating corruption and money laundering in Petrobras.
Linked Articles
How Brazil’s ‘Nine Horsemen’ Cracked a Bribery Scandal
Wall Street Journal 04/07/2015
A Blunt Chief Justice Unafraid to Upset Brazilâs Status QuoNew York Times 08/23/2013
The need to boost the minimum wage in Britain as wages fall behind the cost of living
08/20/2013
Linked Articles
U.K. Moves To Tackle Income Squeeze
Wall Street Journal 08/20/2013
As the Working Poor Become More Common in Britain, So Does HungerNew York Times 01/02/2014
Declan Walsh on why the firing of live ammunition on protesters in Cairo may end up as a watershed event for the Muslim world going forward
08/16/2013
Declan Walsh sees this in the context of the Muslim world. Janvoo sees this in the context of the world beyond, of Aisa and Latin America which have moved beyond the divisive politics of the past and away from military regimes- S. Korea, Thailand, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and one party PRI Mexico. The return of Gen. Park's daughter as president of S. Korea was a different one when she apologized for the behaviour of her father, even saying she coud not spit on the image of her father. Nieto's PRI is apologetic about its past and says its different, working with the opposition PRD and PAN parties on constitutional changes for reforming the econoy. Egypt and the Arab world is no exception. The Saudis and Emirates are able to deliver in economic terms as long as oil supplies and prices are high. Egypt has to find its own path and learn from the past to build the future.
Linked Articles
Other Nations Offer a Lesson to Egyptâs Military Leaders
New York Times 08/24/2013
Democracy in Egypt Can WaitNew York Times 08/16/2013
The Washington Post under the new vision of Amazon's Jeff Bezos
08/06/2013
The man behind the Kindle e-reader takes up the job of putting the Post on tablets.
Linked Articles
Washington Post 08/06/2013
Washington Post to be sold to Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon - The Washington PostWashington Post 08/06/2013
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