Middle Class

Why Globalism Failed

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Not so long ago, the West was captivated by visions of the ‘end of history’. Francis Fukuyama, Thomas Friedman, Kenichi Ohmae and others envisaged the permanent triumph of a global neoliberal order.  read more »

The New Corporatism That's Killing Capitalism

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Over the years since the financial crisis, economic power and wealth has become ever more concentrated in fewer hands. This is something leaders have acknowledged, and policymakers have tried to do something about.  read more »

This Rush to Electric Cars is a Colossal Mistake

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We may soon regret the radical and absolutist embrace of electric vehicles (EVs). Governments across the world are planning to ban sales of new petrol and diesel cars, and to take older, gas-guzzling vehicles off the road.  read more »

Subjects:

What America's Urban Exodus Means for San Francisco

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Over the past few weeks, seemingly endless stories have detailed San Francisco’s continuing troubles, with its retail core collapse and high office vacancy rates being the latest areas of serious attention.  read more »

If It’s “Livable,” You Can’t Afford It

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North America’s most livable cities are also among the least affordable. At least, that’s my conclusion from the Economist‘s 2023  read more »

Housing Report: Blame Ourselves, Not Our Stars

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No issue plagues Californians more than the high cost of housing. By almost every metric—from rents to home prices—Golden State residents suffer the highest burden for shelter of any state in the continental U.S.  read more »

Can California Be Saved?

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Some conservatives regard California as a lost cause, its economy and society doomed to decline. Yet despite its awful regulatory regime, the state retains its natural bounty and an edge in many key industries.  read more »

Nurturing California Industries - Report

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California has the opportunity to maintain and grow industries that can provide future jobs to middle class citizens and make the state more competitive. Below is an excerpt from this newly released report.  read more »

Tory Autocracy

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Over the past century, and even before, conservative political movements thrived by challenging the Left’s appeal to the working and middle class. Virtually all the successful movements on the democratic Right  read more »

What Really Divides America

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For almost a decade, the West has been engaged in a deepening conflict. Sometimes it flares up as a political debate; sometimes as a culture war.  read more »