Pandemic theatre?
Thursday, September 18, 2025
UVA Health Still Squeezing Money From Patients — By Seizing Their Home Equity
Property liens are the hidden icebergs of patient medical debt, legal experts say, lying unseen, often for decades, before they surface to claim hard-won family savings or inheritance proceeds.
The Fed’s New Policy Framework: A Major Improvement But More Can Be Done
The Fed’s new policy strategy of average inflation targeting is an unambiguously a positive step, but may not – under all circumstances – subscribe to a sufficiently aggressive make-up strategy when the zero lower bound is binding.
2:00PM Water Cooler 10/20/2020
~ Today’s Water Cooler ~
U.S. Supreme Court Rejects GOP Call Not to Extend Deadline for Mail-In Ballots
A deadlocked U.S. Supreme Court let stand a lower court ruling ruling to extend the deadline for counting mail-in ballots.
Waste Watch: New York Begins Enforcing Plastic Bag Ban
New York begins to enforce its ban on single-use plastic bags, delayed since March by the pandemic and various lawsuits.
COVID-19: Examining Theories for Africa’s Low Death Rates
Countries throughout Africa, like India, are recording lower rates of COVID-19 deaths. The authors examine reasons for this phenomenon.
Can Hunter Biden Be Both Right and Wrong, Both Innocent and Guilty? Yes He Can.
A nuanced primer on the Hunter Biden story : “institutional corruption at its core.” With a heavy helping of Taibbi reporting.
Paul Romer Comes Out Against Contact Tracing in the United States (which Biden Supports)
Can exhortation from the PMC make contact tracing a success?
2:00PM Water Cooler 10/19/2020
~ Today’s Water Cooler ~
Pandemic Causes Food Security to Wobble, While Much of Rural India Still Continues to be Underfed
The pandemic has caused global food security to wobble. Meanwhile, a recent paper shows most rural indians continue to be underfed.
“Fiscal Cliffication” Continues as the Election Looms
The politics of a new fiscal package have now evolved. And not in a good way.
