Health

Still Wrong! Paul Ehrlich Interview on CBS’s 60 Minutes

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CBS decided to start the new year with a 60 Minutes segment on overpopulation. That’s not really all that surprising. In recent months, many left-leaning media outlets profiled advocates of depopulation  read more »

Why WFH Will Not Doom Cities

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Thomas Edsall of the New York Times recently wrote a piece in which he questioned several top academics in economics and real estate on whether two outcomes of the Covid pandemic  read more »

CSY Repost – What Happened to Addressing Inequality?

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My father, a retired AME Church pastor, on occasion would start a sermon with a story about a pastor preaching a particularly fantastic sermon. The pastor was heaped with praise by his congregants after service. The following Sunday he preached the exact same sermon, to the puzzlement of the church members.  read more »

Friends of the Urban Forest

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Cities are better when there’s a generous tree canopy. Vegetation keeps the city cooler in summer, trees help clean the air, absorb noise, and beautify the landscape. Properties on tree lined streets are often more desirable and statistically more valuable than those in barren neighborhoods.  read more »

Landing in London Without a Connection

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On a recent visit to London, my phone did not connect to the networks abroad when I landed. Within seconds, I was filled with anxiety; as someone who is constantly texting, using social media, and consuming information on my device, I felt empty and exposed  read more »

Core City Population Losses Detailed

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We are living amidst a sea change in demographic trends. According to the Census Bureau, the United States last year experienced its lowest population growth “since the founding of the nation” more than 230 years ago.  read more »

Between the Stupid and the Evil

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‘We have two parties here, and only two. One is the evil party, and the other is the stupid party… I’m very proud to be a member of the stupid party… Occasionally, the two parties get together to do something that’s both evil and stupid. That’s called bipartisanship.’  read more »

Long COVID

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This is a disease one should not underestimate, but let’s assume that the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic is past us, at least for now. The disease’s impact on economy, our way of life, the state of democracy and the world will resonate for years to come  read more »

Class War is Just Beginning

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With the seeming deconstruction of the Biden Administration proceeding at a rapid clip, many on the right hope for an end to the conscious stoking of class resentments that has characterized progressive politics.  read more »

Subjects:

The Pandemic as an Employment Shell Game

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I have always been skeptical of the use of labor statistics. In 2009, I began to write in Working-Class Perspectives about the de facto unemployment rate, because official reports on the unemployment rate in Youngstown left out much of the story. Drawing on traditional Bureau of Labor Statistics data as well as comparative studies from the Center for Economic and Policy Research, I looked beyond how many people were looking for work to add figures for how many were underemployed, discouraged, or unable to work because of disability.  read more »