Economy and Business
Bernie and Goliath
Racial Inequality Is Hollowing Out America’s Middle Class
America's middle class is under assault. Since 1983, national median wealth has declined by 20 percent, falling from $73,000 to $64,000 in 2013. And U.S. homeownership has been in a steady decline since 2005. While we often hear about the struggles of the white...
Sometimes the Poor Make It Big. Usually They Stay Poor.
We all want to live in a country where all it takes is hard work and some talent for anyone to succeed. We tell ourselves that we do. We even see examples of people who "came from nothing" and ended up rich and famous. And it's true that it sometimes happens....
Tax Cuts for the Rich Help the Rich, Not You
Soon you're going to hear about taxes. You’ll see images of families flashing across your TV screen while a soothing narrator assures you that the tax plan being debated in Washington really is good for you. The newspapers you read, the social media apps you scroll...
The Next Subprime Loan Crisis
The self-described "Geniuses of Wall Street" are being stupid. Again. In 2007, their stupid schemes and frauds crashed our economy, destroying middle-class jobs, wealth, and opportunities. Far from being punished, however, the scofflaws were bailed out by their...
Teachers Shouldn’t Have to Panhandle for School Supplies
Back to school! These three simple words used to leave America’s public school teachers giddy with anticipation. Now they leave them opening up their wallets and worrying. The problem? Teachers have been spending out of their own pockets for generations to decorate...
Stop the Buzz Killing Beer Barons!
Next time you reach for a cold beer on a hot summer day, you'll have some uninvited drinking buddies: the beer barons. Two conglomerates now control 90 percent of U.S. beer production. They use their power to raise prices, squeeze out small brewers, and limit your...
What Happened to All Those Foreclosed Houses?
We know that millions of American families lost their homes after Wall Street's 2007 financial crash. But where did all those houses go? It turns out that Wall Streeters themselves formed profiteering investment groups that rushed out to scoop up tens of thousands of...
How Air Conditioning Unites — And Divides
Before air conditioning, even presidents had to suffer. In the summer months, Abraham Lincoln used to ride a horse every evening from the White House to a cottage at a higher elevation four miles away. There he'd join his family in an attempt to escape the muggiest...
Don’t Lie to Poor Kids About Why They’re Poor
Work hard and you’ll get ahead — that’s the mantra driven into young people across the country. But what happens when children born into poverty run face first into the crushing reality that the society they live in really isn’t that fair at all? As new research...
