A timeout during the heated election to write: If there's one issue showing true bipartisan momentum in the interest of the public good, it's financial transparency in government. Expect the issue to be up front during Colorado's 2009 legislative session. For now, you can read a Denver Post op-ed co-authored by my Independence Institute colleagues Amy Oliver and Stephanie Kubala. Check it out, and see where the transparency issue has taken hold already, and what promise it holds for Colorado. … [Read more...]
Putting Today’s Economy in Perspective
It's national election season, which means perspective on the economy is badly needed. Thanks to Rossputin for highlighting this article from economists Brian Wesbury and Robert Stein. Read the whole thing for yourself, but interesting tidbits are that family income last year hit its first all-time high in 7 years, income inequality declined faster than at any point in the previous 45 years, and the poverty rate stayed below its pre-1999 norms. Yes, economic growth has lagged, causing the country to flirt with recession. But according to Wesbury and Stein, "these figures bolster the case that the underlying fundamentals of the US economy were sound in 2007, before the Federal Reserve decided to try to inflate our way out of financial … [Read more...]